


The Titans

by Aheichou



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Assassins & Hitmen, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Blood and Violence, Death, Depression, F/F, F/M, Government Conspiracy, Human Trafficking, M/M, Murder, Pervert Erwin Smith
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-01
Updated: 2015-05-18
Packaged: 2018-02-11 07:09:57
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 10
Words: 25,378
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2058753
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Aheichou/pseuds/Aheichou
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Armin: an above average high school senior<br/>also known as The Man with the Plan</p><p>Eren: a below average high school senior<br/>also known as The Charmer</p><p>Hangi: a scientist<br/>also known as The Researcher</p><p>Levi: lead singer of the popular rock band Survey Corps<br/>also know as The Clean-up or The Killer</p><p>Mikasa: an average high school senior<br/>also known as The Killer</p><p> </p><p>Together they make up the government's most covert and coveted group of assassins: The Titans.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi you guys! Thank you for reading this story! I designed this story so that anyone can enjoy it, even if they're not in the Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan fandom!  
> This story won't entirely be based on the relationships listed, but there will be a little bit of stuff that pertains to it ^-^  
> Thanks and enjoy~

Eren felt a buzz in his pocket. Without even a look he knew it was his cellphone signaling him about the upcoming assassination.

He smirked to himself and gathered his things from his desk and shoved them all in his backpack messily. He stood up and walked through the aisles of desks, all student eyes watching him as he placed the emergency pass on the teacher's desk.

Then he walked out of the room with a smile dying on his lips. He waited for Armin and Mikasa in the hallway, leaning against the wall with his hands shoved in his pockets. The adjacent classrooms' doors opened and they also emerged with a smile.

Without any communication they walked silently to the student parking lot and climbed into Eren's car.

As soon as they were alone they laughed.

"I love how we can get out of school so easily!" Armin whooped.

"And nobody suspects a thing!" Eren smirked.

He drove quickly out of the school and towards Levi's apartment, driving as fast as he could while obeying the speed limit.

Eren let out a small groan, "The only thing I don't like about this particular assassination is because I have to put up with that horrible woman."

"It's not that bad Eren. Just deal with her for the time being, then you can relish her death." Armin reasoned.

"Yeah, I guess you're right." Eren sighed.

He pulled into the parking lot of Levi's apartment complex and saw that Hangi and Levi were waiting for them already. They discretely got out of the car, now aware that they were being watched. They had to act as normal high schoolers ditching 6th period under the prying eyes of multiple cameras.

For now anyways.

They knocked on Levi's apartment door and waited for him to answer.

The short man answered right away, with an annoyed look on his face. "Shouldn't you be in school?" He snapped.

"We needed to get out of there! It's a cage, I swear!" Eren laughed.

Levi huffed and let them in with a grunt.

As soon as they were inside they doubled over in laughter.

"That sounded very convincing Levi." Armin wiped at a tear in his eye.

"Yeah, if this was any different I would be thinking that you were going to murder _us_ instead of Deandra!" Eren hooted.

Levi silenced them with a cold glare.

He waved them over to his kitchen table where Hangi was already surrounded by multiple papers scattered across the surface.

"Let's discuss the plan." She smiled.

They all sat around the table and Armin cleared his throat, and began to review his plan. "Okay, Eren, remember you work for a new clothing line and want Deandra as one of your models."

Hangi looked up from a pile of her notes and smirked at Eren. "We already know De is really into Eren, so it won't be a problem for her to fall right into our clutches."

Levi rolled his eyes, "Either that or she is extremely stupid."

Hangi laughed and dropped the papers on the table. "You know we haven't really had a case where the person wasn't extremely attracted to Eren." She turned to Eren with a mischievous smile, "Why do you think that is?"

Mikasa placed her head in her folded hands, "I think it's because of his eyes."

Eren flushed and scratched the back of his head, "Nah, I don't think that's it."

He adverted his gaze and tried not act embarrassed.

 _Everybody_ always made comments about his multicolored eyes. One of his eyes is a deep gold that makes it seem yellow and catlike, and the other is a bright turquoise that sparkles in the sunlight. He didn't think they were special at all; he thought they were odd. But everybody always fell in love with them at first sight. Levi always made sure to remind him that he was only called for the job because of his eyes; that no one else would succumb to his will if he had two turquoise eyes or two yellow eyes. Eren liked to think that he hypnotized people with them, it made the job fun.

"Yeah, I don't think that's it either." Levi huffed, "They're hideous!"

Eren shrugged his shoulders,"Maybe it's because of my charming personality?"

Hangi laughed, "Nope I don't think that's it!"

Armin sighed and tapped the table to get everybody's attention back to the operation. "Okay, Eren, you're going to introduce Mikasa to Deandra. You should use the excuse of you wanting to me her before your relationship became, " Armin smirked and waggled his eyebrows. " _serious_." Eren flushed and the group laughed.

Armin turned to Mikasa. "Try to act like Deandra isn't good enough for Eren. Li-"

Levi cut Armin off with a laugh. "That shouldn't be too hard for you. You're way too overprotective anyways."

Mikasa kicked him in the shin underneath the table and Levi muttered a few choice curse words.

Armin continued, ignoring the two of them. "Mikasa will stab Deandra in the gut and Levi will shoot his arrow-turned-knife into Deandra's head, chest, I dunno. Your choice Levi."

Levi smirked and cracked his knuckles, "I love it when it's my choice."

Armin turned back to face Eren, whose face eventually had cooled off. "Yeah, you could make the scene more believable like...hold her in your arms or something while she dies while whispering," His voice dropped so it sounded deep and seductive. " _promises into her e-_ "

Eren flicked a pencil at Armin's face to get him to shut up.

Hangi clapped her hands and smiled, "I found the perfect hiding spot too! A forest where nobody ventures because they think ghouls lurk in the trees!"

Eren's eyes twitched. "Hangi are you su-"

"Of course I'm sure!" She yelled, cackling.

Levi patted her back to get her to calm down.

They all cleaned up the papers and shoved them in Hangi's workbag to keep on file. Then they all left Levi's apartment and split up into two groups: each group boarding a car and driving to the house of Deandra. The car with Hangi, Levi, and Armin parked at least half a block away from the destination whilst the car with Eren and Mikasa parked right in front of Deandra's house.

Eren stepped out of the car, immediately putting on his mask. He walked up the driveway and knocked on Deandra's door. He heard running footsteps and the door was suddenly flung open.

"Eren!" Deandra flung her arms around him and squeezed him.

Eren awkwardly hugged her back even though they just saw each other last night. Deandra finally let go and looked him in the eyes.

"Come in!" She smiled. Eren walked inside of the house and as soon as the door was closed he was flung to the wall.

He grunted as he felt Deandra's body pressed against his.

"So...how about that new job...Eren?" She purred in his ear. "I hate modeling for Gap."

She kissed his cheeks repeatedly and Eren told himself to calm down.

"In all due time, my love." He whispered.

She pressed her lips against his and he felt himself melt in her arms.

_'God..what is this girl doing to him?!' Eren shouted at himself mentally._

He remembered that this was an assassination mission and pulled her away from him.

"Deandra..."He whispered in her ear, feeling pleasure as she shuddered in his grip. "You know we're not alone...right?"

She looked up at him, puzzled and Eren smiled.

"I wanted you to meet my sister...before," He gazed deeply into her deep blue eyes, "our relationship gets anymore serious." He caressed her cheek and she smiled.

' _May whatever god curse a Armin for his excuses!' Eren thought_

"Of course, I would love to meet her." She squealed, pecking his check quickly.

"Okay," Eren detached himself from Deandra and made his way to the door. "I'll got get her, she's waiting in the car."

He quickly escaped the girl's clutches and opened the passenger's side door to his car once he reached it.

Mikasa smirked at him and pointed at his face.

"What?"

Eren looked in the rearview mirror of his car and found that his face was covered in pink shimmery lipstick marks. He groaned and she giggled.

Eren helped Mikasa out of the car and walked her up the driveway to Deandra, who was waiting on the porch.

She smiled at Mikasa and let them both into her house.

They stood in the foyer and glanced at each other awkwardly.

"Hi! I'm Deandra!" She stuck out her hand and Mikasa took it.

"Mikasa." She smiled.

"Well, ladies, now that you know each other, why don't we all sit down and discuss some...things?" Eren motioned Deandra with his eyebrows towards the living room.

~

Outside, in a tree in front of a window in that let them them look inside the foyer, Armin, Hangi, and Levi watched Eren and Deandra.

Levi grimaced at the sight of Deandra, "God...what a slut."

He turned to look at the keen Hangi, who was watching the ordeal like a hawk.

"I swear while you were researching her I saw more than _ten_ rings!"

Hangi put a finger to her lips, "Quiet!"

Levi laughed, "Why?! Do you want to watch Eren be _slobbered_ over?! I a-"

This time he was interrupted by Armin, "Quiet! They're coming!"

Levi sighed and watched as Eren practically ran out of the house to get Mikasa from the car.

"Brat." he mumbled.

"Get ready Levi!" Armin ordered.

Levi grunted and reached behind his back and pulled out his handy bow and arrow-turned-knife from the quiver slung around his shoulder. Levi never needed more than one arrow-turned-knives to do the job. He fixed his aim and made sure the knife attached to the arrow was secure.

"You're going to die, slut." He muttered under his breath, nocking the arrow-knife and pulled back the string, the sound of it stretching bringing a smirk to his lips.

~

"Wait Eren." Mikasa placed a hand on Eren's arm and gave him _the look_.

He nodded in fear and glanced back at Deandra where Mikasa's eyes were already trained.

"I need to discuss some things with you, Deandra." Mikasa glared.

Deandra shrugged, "Fine with me, Mikasa."

Eren pretended to feel awkward, pulling on the hem of his shirt as Deandra and Mikasa shared death glares.

"Deandra?" Eren asked, breaking the maddening silence. "Can I open the window? It has gotten a little warm in here."

When she nodded he walked calmly to the window, opening it and signaling the other guys in the branches of the trees surrounding the window that Mikasa was going to make her move.

He muttered under his breath, "Charming-success."

When Eren stood back besides Mikasa,he watched as she slid a knife out if her coat pocket.

Deandra's eyes widened at the sight of it and stepped back.

"I'm not going to hurt you Deandra," Mikasa twirled the knife expertly around her fingers and lifted the red scarf around her neck over her nose and mouth. It was her trademark for whenever she was going to make a move.

"I just want to warn you-" She trailed off and moved with lightning speed to jut the knife into Deandra's abdomen.

Deandra coughed up blood and staggered back, her eyes turning to Eren's, looking betrayed.

"Sorry," Mikasa laughed. "I lied."

Eren signaled Levi and an arrow flew through the window, landing smack dab in the middle of Deandra's back. The knife strapped to the arrow protruded from Deandra's staining pink dress, and Eren and Mikasa knew that the assassination would be a success.

But for now they still had to play the part, to the very end.

Eren rushed to Deandra, who had collapsed in the foyer of her very own home, the blood pooling around her stabbed areas.

"No! Deandra! I didn't mean for this to happen! I'm so sorry!" Eren cried out, tears falling onto Deandra's body.

Deandra smiled weakly and reached up her hand to caress his cheek, "E-Eren...." But the light in her bright blue eyes dulled and her arm fell into the puddle of blood.

Eren stood up and dusted himself off, leaning out the window and gave the other members a smirk. "It's finished. Assassination-success."

~

With that, Eren stepped out of the way as Levi flew into the window with a whole bunch of cleaning supplies and a body bag.

He stood above Deandra's corpse and grunted. "How grizzly."

He smiled widely as he snapped on some blue latex gloves.

How he got them, Eren didn't know. He just hoped that he didn't use them for anything else.

Eren and Mikasa left the house to get their spare pair of clothes from the trunk of the car along with the ice chest. Levi lifted Deandra's body into the body bag and tossed her body across the living room so he would have more room to clean. He wiped up the blood and polished the floor to masked it sparkle. He closed the window that he came in through and checked the rest of the house to make sure nothing looked suspicious. He threw Deandra's cellphone into the body bag with her, just in case. Then just for fun he stuffed his (now bloody) blue latex gloves in the corpse's mouth.

Then Eren and Mikasa brought in the ginormous ice chest and went to different rooms to change into something less bloody. Levi opened the ice chest and deposited Deandra's body in there.

When he found that she fit perfectly he laughed darkly, "Wow, I didn't have to break your bones just to get you to fit! What a nice change!"

He closed the ice chest with a sadistic smile and wheeled it out the door where Armin and Hangi were waiting for it by the car.

He patted Hangi on the shoulder as Armin shoved the ice chest into the trunk of the car.

"Cleanup-success." He whispered in her ear.

~

Eren and Mikasa finished changing into clean clothes and walked out of the house to find the rest of the assassins waiting for them. Eren had made sure to rid his face of the shimmery pink lipstick, making sure he scrubbed every single part of his face to get everything that reminded him of Deandra off.

They boarded the two cars again, the same people in the different cars the way they arrived. The second car followed the the first car as it ventured to the nearby forest Hangi had talked about. Once they reached the safe part of the forest, they parked and opened the trunks of both cars, taking out the ice chest and some shovels. Hangi clapped her hands excitedly.

"Now! It's time to hide a body!" She squealed.

Eren and Levi proceeded to digging and hole while Mikasa, Armin, and Hangi left to keep a look out at different parts of the surrounding forest.

When Levi and Eren were done they opened the ice chest and deposited Deandra's body into the hole.

"Goodbye forever, slut." Levi smirked as they piled pounds of dirt onto the body.

Once they finished making the grave they whistled and called the rest of the group back.

"The job's done." Eren reported, wiping sweat off of his forehead.

Levi noticed and grunted, "Tch. Filthy."

"Hiding-success." The group of a Titans shouted together, but not too loud to alert others of their presence.

~

"So you guys want to go out for some milkshakes?" Hangi asked as they headed back to the two cars.

"I'd _kill_ for a milkshake!" Armin winked.

They all laughed, the hidden joke only kept between the five of them.

"How cheesy." Levi smirked.

Then they all decided to meet up at the local diner, _Rose's_. That's it, that's the name. There used to be the word _Diner_ after _Rose's_ , but eventually everybody grew tired of the extra word, so now it was just _Rose's_.

They split up again in the two different cars and parked besides each other in front of the busy diner. They ordered their desired milkshakes and while they waited they talked about the operation that had just been a success.

"Sooo..." Armin gave everyone a look that signaled to the group that top secret information was going to be discussed.

"That meeting we had with Deandra went pretty well....don't you think?" He whispered.

Mikasa poked Eren's cheeks with a smirk, "Yes, especially since Eren was able to get all of that lipstick off." Eren blushed and the group laughed.

Levi smiled, a rare occasion when he wasn't releasing an arrow into someone or cleaning up a mess, "I was actually quite surprised that Deandra fit so well in the ice chest."

"Really?!" Hangi screeched. "That's awesome! I noticed I didn't have to push any limbs back under the lid!"

"God, Hangi keep it down! You got everybody in Shignashina to look at you." Levi snapped.

It was true, everybody in the diner was looking at Hangi with a peculiar look in their eyes.

In response Hanig turned around and smiled and waved.

Levi sighed and rubbed his face with his hands. "You're such a dork, Hangi."

The table laughed again and the rest of the diner went back to its normal pace.

Their milkshakes arrived and they went back to talking about normal things: Levi's band, Hangi's lab research, and other things that made them sound like normal people and not cold-hearted killers.

When they were all finished, they paid and walked outside to get to the two vehicles.

"So...next Wednesday again?" Eren asked.

He didn't want to admit it, but he hoped that even if they stopped assassinating people that they would all stay friends. He liked Hangi and Levi, and he liked it when they all hung out together.

Levi nodded. "Yeah, see you next Wednesday, brats." He winked and he and Hangi headed back to their car, so Levi could drive Hangi back where she left her car at his apartment.

The three teenagers stood on the sidewalk and watched the two adults drive away in content.

Eren and Mikasa dropped Armin off at his grandfather's house and went back home, a peaceful mood flooding the empty house.

As Eren's head hit the pillow later that night, he couldn't help but smile and whisper:

"The Titans' 109th assassination: completed"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys! Thanks for reading and for all of those comments! I really appreciate them ^-^  
> I hope you enjoy this nerve wracking chapter ~

There isn't a leader in this group, but if there was a person to start with the introductions, Armin is the one.

Armin is basically the man with a plan. He isn't the leader, but they always turn to him for decision making. He comes up with the best plans so that they can go in, kill, and get out before anyone suspects a thing.

Eren is what they call: the charmer. He is usually the one who worms his way through into victims's life, earning their trust before he betrays them. He can easily seduce or charm any person he likes just with one look at his multicolored eyes.

Hangi is the researcher. She investigates the victim and discovers some background information to help them with the assassination. She also looks for nearby safe places where they can dump the bodies and not get caught.

Levi is the clean-up and also the killer. With his OCD, nothing can go uninspected. He cleans up the evidence and makes sure everything looks...." _right_ ". He also helps Mikasa with the killing with his incredible aim with a bow and arrow.

Mikasa is the killer. She usually stabs a person with a knife she keeps on her person. There is no need for further explanation. One of her signature trademarks is always wearing a red scarf on her neck, even as she murders a victim.

~

"Did you hear? Someone went missing last night! I bet it was the work of The Titans!" Reiner smirked.

Eren's eyes lifted from the notebook he was frantically scribbling in and planted on Reiner's.

"Who're 'The Titans'?" He asked, trying to keep his calm as he glanced from Reiner to Mikasa to Armin and back again.

Nobody was supposed to know about The Titans.

Nobody other than the government, that is.

Reiner laughed and waved Eren off with a flick of his wrist while taking a bite into his heart cheeseburger, "Oh! Of course you wouldn't know about them. It's supposed to be ' _Top Secret_ '"

Eren grunted, "If it's _'Top Secret'_ then how do you know about them?"

"Reiner's dad told us about it one night when we we're having a sleepover." Bertholdt explained.

Oh, Eren remembered Reiner's father. They had been ordered to kill him. He had a very loud scream, and it almost alerted the neighbors to their presence. They had to escape very quickly and Levi almost didn't do his job correctly. But he couldn't say that he knew him,so he would just have to insult them.

"A _sleepover_?!" Eren laughed.

"No! It wasn't a sleepover! It was...." Reiner's eyes searched the lunchroom, as if his answer was in the disgusting food the students were consuming. "A get-together that lasted all night!" He said.

Eren rolled his eyes. "Yeah, _right_."

"But what are The Titans?" Armin asked.

Eren barely realized that his question hadn't been answered.

"Okay we're not supposed to tell you this but," Reiner's voice dropped to a whisper so that none of the other seniors could hear them. "The Titans are the most covert and coveted group of assassins hired by the government. They kill stealthily," Bertholdt butted in, as if they had planned this. "and in the dead of night!" They posed, their back touching and pointing their fingers so it looked they were holding guns.

Eren had to force back a laugh.

Wow, the first part was correct but they weren't stealthy enough to dress in all black and work with agility; that would just be suspicious if they looked like ninjas. It was better to make it look like they were normal people so they can kill beneath everybody's noses. They have tried killing in the dead of night, but it was always suspicious when you were found leaving a house at night. But if it was absolutely necessary then they would do it.

"Wow!" Eren breathed.

"I wouldn't want to get caught messing with those guys!" Armin laughed.

"Eh, I bet I can take 'em." Mikasa cracked her knuckles and smirked while the boys at their table hooted.

"Oh are you guys talking about The Titans?" Hitch slid besides Reiner and Bertholdt, her tray touching Eren's.

"Um...yeah." Eren said, his suspicions being raised.

Reiner crossed his arms across his chest, "How do you know about them?"

"Everybody knows about them, _duh_!" Eren rolled his eyes and looked at Mikasa and Armin.

So much for being _covert_.

"Well Eren, Mikasa, and Armin didn't." Bertholdt pointed out.

Hitch looked at the trio sitting in front of her. "Well mostly everyone knows about them." She corrected herself.

Reiner grunted in acceptance of the answer.

"But man!" Hitch leaned forward and rested her head in her hands, staring dreamily at the ceiling. "If I met one of the Titans, I'm going to ask them to _marry me_!"

Eren diverted his gaze and chuckled softly at Armin's pink, flushed face.

 

"What, don't ya think The Titans would be hot?!"

"Hitch stop!"

~

"You ready?"

Eren took a deep breath and turned to face Mikasa, a smile on his lips."Yeah, let's get this over with!"

Eren and Mikasa left the car and climbed up the apartment complex's stairs. They stood in front of Mr. Pixis's apartment door and knocked.

A part of Eren's brain told him that something bad was going to happen today, it made him feel uneasy. Another part of his brain was reausrring the uneasy part.

Why was he suddenly sweating?

He's done this many times, what made this time any different?

Mr. Pixis opened the door with a smile and greeted Eren with a smile. "Hello Eren. I'm happy to see you!"

His eyes drifted to Mikasa and she smiled and waved.

"Mr. Pixis, this is my sister Mikasa. I'm sorry for the inconvenience, but I needed a ride." Eren said, smiling apologetically.

"No, it's no problem at all! Why don't you all come inside?" He ushered the two inside. Mr. Pixis told them to get themselves comfortable while he got them some wine.

Eren appreciated when people actually believed he was over 21. Free alcohol; that's all that matters. Mikasa and Eren sat in silence for a while, too afraid to talk about the operation in fear that Mr. Pixis would overhear them or become suspicious.

There weren't any windows looking inside the apartment, so the other Titans had to perch on top of the balcony's awning. Levi would have to bend over backward and upside down to make the shot, but it was a good thing he was so flexible.

Mr. Pixis returned to living room with a bottle of wine and glasses. "Why don't we go drinks these out on the balcony?" He gestured to the space that Eren was just thinking about and smiled.

If they went outside then he would see the others.

But they couldn't act suspiciously....

Hopefully Mr. Pixis had bad eyesight at night.

"That would be great!" Eren smiled and Mikasa and him stood up and followed him outside.

"Wow, the sky looks brilliant!" Eren exclaimed as he took a step outside. He did this to alert the other Titans of their presence, but he wasn't lying.

The sky was a beautiful deep purple, which mixed in near the horizon to a light lavender. Stars were scattered all over and the skyscrapers made the view even more amazing.

"Now I know why you wanted to come out here, Mr. Pixis." Mikasa smiled.

Outside on the balcony there was a table and few chairs, and Eren thought Mr. Pixis had them there for occasions when he had visitors like he did now.

But he wouldn't be getting any visitors anymore.

Not even to his grave.

"Let's sit here and watch the stars." Mr. Pixis sat in the seat facing his apartment and Eren sat on either side of him.

_"Dammit, he couldn't probably see the other Titans now." Eren thought._

But if he did see them, he wasn't letting on.

They sat in silence, occasionally sipping the wine Mr. Pixis had poured for them.

"Ah, I'm going to miss this place." Mr. Pixis sighed, looking out to see the sky.

"Whatever do you mean, Mr. Pixis?" Eren asked, panic rising in him.

Did he know he was going to die tonight?

Mr. Pixis sighed again and raised his face to look at the awning, and the group of assassins perched atop of it.

"I think you know what I mean, Mr. Jaeger, Ms. Mikasa." Mr. Pixis responded, solemnly. Eren and Mikasa followed his gaze and watched as he other Titans froze in fear.

Mr. Pixis knew they were The Titans.

Eren yelled, "Levi! Now!"

Levi acknowledged him and became unparalyzed as he wrapped his fingers tight around the wood of the bow and stretched the string.

Mikasa pulled the knife out of her pocket with agility and was about indulge it into Mr. Pixis's back when he spun around and caught her wrist. She cried out and Levi let his arrow-turned-knife fly free. The arrow flew for Mr. Pixis's head but his free hand caught it before it landed through his skull with accuracy and speed.

The Titans stood there in silence and shock.

 _Nobody_ could dodge Levi's arrows, let alone catch it.

Just _who_ was this man they had been ordered to kill?!

Mr. Pixis finally spoke, shattering the suffocating angst,"Titans, I knew what you were planning from the start."

"I don't mind dying, just let me be the one who decides how I die." This last sentence was spoken in a choked whisper.

Mr. Pixis dropped his hand and let the arrow fall from his grip. He let go of Mikasa's wrist and they all watched in silence as the older man climbed on top of the balcony's railing.

"Mr. Pixis...! Wait!" Eren protested.

He ran for the man but Armin's voice stopped him. "Eren, let him go."

Eren's eyes widened and he choked back a sob.

Mr. Pixis stood to face them, his back to the sky he loved.

"Titans," He addressed.

Then he spoke the sentence that would haunt their nightmares for all eternity:

"You kill for the government without mercy. But do you know _why_?"

And with that he leaned back, and he was flying through the air. The Titans looked away as they heard the sickening crunch of his body hitting the ground.

They stood there, not wanting to speak of what had just happened.

It all had escalated way too quickly.

"Levi, go and retrieve the body. Hurry!" Armin ordered, his voice shaking.

Levi grunted and jumped off the awning and over the railing.

"Eren, Mikasa, the ice chest." The two siblings left without another word.

Hangi and Armin stood on the balcony alone, their minds processing Mr. Pixis's final words.

"Hangi," Armin turned to face the taller brunette woman. "We have work to do."

Hangi grunted in agreement and jumped over the railing to help the others.

Armin waited a moment before following as a thought passed through his mind.

He muttered to himself,"Something's going on. I don't like the sound of it."

~

Everybody eventually helped Levi with the cleaning; nobody wanted to stay alone with their thoughts. Working was the only way to clear their minds and it helped them all calm down. They hid the body in a nearby ditch where Mr. Pixis lived, and after the grueling task they stood besides each other, facing the building where a man just committed suicide.

"What do you think he meant?" Eren asked, and the tension built up.

"I-I don't know." Armin blinked.

It unnerved everyone. Why did this man want to die so badly enough to commit suicide and be unable to see the beautiful view again?

"This calls for an investigation. We should meet at my place this weekend for further investigation." Levi said morosely.

They all nodded in agreement.

Eren lifted his hands to his face, he could see the unwashed blood belonging to Mr. Pixis tracing the lines in his palms. 

They hadn't cleaned themselves up after handling his body, no one was outside at this time of day.

The rest of the Titans followed suit, contemplating their bloodstained hands, their steely gazes meeting each other's.

Mikasa spoke the words everyone was thinking:

"Who _are_ we?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry Pixis ;A; but it was necessary


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys!  
> Sorry for the short chapter :  
> D:  
> I'm also sorry because I won't be posting very often anymore ;A; but I will continue this story! Thanks for reading and for all of your lovely comments ^-^  
> Enjoy~

Eren sat besides his mother's gurney, clutching her hand in his. He was deep in thought as he stared at his mom's face, willing for her eyes to open.

"Mom, can I tell you something?" He asked.

His mother didn't respond, but Eren knew she would have said _yes_.

"A man committed suicide in front of me, and he said something before he died. It makes me think, what am I doing with my life?" Eren watched his mother's chest rise and fall.

He left out the part where he was ordered to kill him. His mother would have a heart attack in her sleep if she found out her son was an assassin. He didn't want to affect her health anymore, not after the accident. But, the only reason he took up the job was because of her.

Eren liked to think she was in a peaceful place in her dreams. He rested his head on his mother's lap, and he could almost feel her fingers running through his brown locks.

He closed his eyes and didn't know he had fallen asleep until a nurse came in and told him visiting hours had been over an hour ago.

~

Eren visited his mother alone; Mikasa felt like she was intruding on something private when she went with him. Eren didn't mind her company, but secretly he liked being alone with his mother, though she was also Mikasa's mother.

Now as he walked the dark streets alone his mind wandered to what him and the other Titans would discover at their secret meeting tomorrow.

Eren didn't think he could bear it if he had killed innocent people.

~

"So where shall we begin?"

They were all gathered around Levi's kitchen table, the same thought on their minds:

_How did all of this start?_

Hangi tapped her chin and started her laptop. "I researched on Pixis before the assassination, as you all know. The thing is," Her voice dropped to a whisper. "He was a scientist who works for the government. His minor is also astronomy."

"No wonder he always talked about the sky." Eren realized, Hangi grunted in agreement and continued.

"But the thing is...why would the government want us to kill off one of their scientists, their best one in fact?"

The room fell into a silence full of dread.

"You don't think," Levi's cool demeanor vanished as his voice trembled. "He knew too much, do you?"

The room was quiet again.

"I'm afraid that might be the case." Hangi answered.

"We never really questioned why we killed people, like Pixis said. But there must be a more logical reason!" Armin said.

"Why don't we research on all of the others we were ordered to kill? Maybe we will find another explanation." Mikasa said, a tone of pleading in her voice.

We all wanted to think of something different.

"Okay, we should do that." Armin agreed.

Hangi nodded and pounded away on the keyboard of her laptop. "The weird thing is that there are a variety of people we have killed, there aren't really any patterns or similarities in their professions or personalities." Hangi said after a while.

"True, how can a model and scientist be related?" Levi agreed.

"Maybe that's that's what they intended it to be; giving us an array of people so that we couldn't see how they were all connected." Armin thought aloud.

"Now that I look at it," Hangi clicked her tongue. "Some of these people have something to do with the government."

"What?" Eren's voice rose.

"Come look." Hangi motioned at he computer and they all crowded around her. "Look, this guy worked for the president a year ago." She pointed at the screen. "This guy worked for the FBI."

She continued to list all of the people until Levi had enough.

"Okay we get it!" He growled.

Levi didn't want to doubt the government or the president. He didn't want to think they were hiding something from them, that was a horrible thought.

"Most of them have something to do with the science department."

Armin furrowed his brows."Do you think they can be experimenting something, or creating something, that they weren't supposed to or..."

"Maybe.." Hangi closed her laptop and rested her palm on it. "The similarities of all of those people we killed that worked for the government, they worked for only a year after quitting." She turned to look up at the Titans, her glasses gaining a glare and they couldn't read her usually perky brown eyes. "Why would they want to quit? Usually jobs given by the government are very hard to come by. Plus, you get paid what an average family earns in a year each day! Why would they quit when they have so many advantages?"

Armin sighed. "This is all too much. I feel like we're delving into something that we can't easily let go of."

The Titans were quiet once more, all of this information indulging into their brains.

"Hangi, when is our next assassination?" Eren asked.

"We haven't received any word when our next operation will be taking place." She responded.

He nodded, and then shook his head. "I think I should get going, if we poke more into this I feel like my brain is going to explode!"

Levi nodded, and his fingers twitched "Same. I need to clean something." He cleaned when he was stressed, and now he was itching to at least scrub the floor.

The meeting was dismissed and Eren and Mikasa went home without a word to each other.

No one felt like talking, the angst of the possible government conspiracy weighing down on their heads.

Eren pulled into the driveway, hopping out of the car and eagerly walking to the front door. He needed to rest; this was tiring to think about.

He opened the front door and almost collapsed as his knees buckled from the sight of his home.

Written on the wall of the living room in what looked like dripping blood were words that almost made Eren scream:

_We know you know_

_The hunters will be hunted_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> O-o


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys!! Thank you so much for reading ^-^
> 
> I have come up with an idea, since I am writing two stories at the same time, I will be posting a chapter of each in order. 
> 
> For example, if I post a chapter of The Titans, know that a chapter of The Cello's Song will be coming soon. If you are reading both, then I hope it is convenient.  
> Sorry for the short chapters! I will be posting longer ones soon so just bear with me!
> 
> Otherwise....
> 
> Enjoy~

Eren leaned against the door frame for support as his breathing increased rapidly. He heaved, his lungs not seeming to be working. Eren tried to steady myself, and quickly dug his hand into my pocket, searching for his cellphone. Eren dialed Armin's number and gripped the cellphone tightly in my hand.

As it rung, he glanced at Mikasa, who was frozen and staring at the scene.

"Mikasa!"

She turned to Eren, suddenly snapping out of her shock.

"Call Levi. If he doesn't answer, call Hangi." He ordered. She nodded and took out her own cellphone.

There was a chance that Hangi was still at Levi's apartment, so they would just call one of them to save time.

Armin finally picked up and Eren sighed in relief. He wouldn't know what he would do if something had happened to Armin.

"Eren? Is something wrong?" Armin asked.

"Yes, come here quick." Eren trembled.

He hung up and placed the phone on the coffee table. He turned to his wrecked living room, his eyes resting on the familiar picture resting on the mantel. Eren had determined that nothing in the room had been ruined, except for the wall obviously.

But now as he held the picture in his hand, he couldn't but notice that the glass was broken. It was as if it was a sign that everything that made him happy would be broken. 

It was a picture of Eren and Mikasa as children, along with their mother and father. This was the only picture in the whole house that had his father in it. This was how Eren came to know what his father looked like. He didn't really remember his father because he had left them when Eren and Mikasa were very young, probably after the photo was taken. It reminded Eren that he used to have a happy family. 

They had been at a community picnic, the red and white checkered tablecloths peeking out in the photo along with baskets of food. Eren and Mikasa stood side by side, Eren's father's hands placed gently on his shoulders. Eren's mother had wrapped her arms around Mikasa with a gigantic smile. The glare of Eren's father's glasses made it impossible to see the eyes behind them, but Eren liked to think they were the same as his, a yellow and turquoise.

 _'An odd combination of colors'_ Eren remembered his mother saying.

Eren gently ran his fingers along the broken glass, but still slicing his finger in the process. He led the blood run down his finger, and watched it gleam in the light. He wiped it on his jacket then placed the picture on the mantel again.

Eren turned to find Mikasa still in the same sort of shock since they walked in. Her gray eyes were dull and he knew she was in great pain.

Eren embraced her, and she felt limp in his strong arms. Her tears began to stain his T-shirt and he tried to bring her solace. "Mikasa, it's okay. Everything's alright. I'm fine. I'm still alive, and so are you."

Mikasa only clung to him, shaking.

"Eren? Mikasa?" Armin stood in the doorway, observing the terrible mess with wide eyes.

"Armin, we came home to find this." Eren was forced to let go of Mikasa and motioned to the wall.

Armin walked in sullenly, his features darkening. He ran his fingers along the letters and watched as his fingertips turned crimson. "Who would do this?" He asked, his voice wavering.

"The government, _obviously_." Levi's voice rang behind them, surprisingly stronger than the rest of theirs.

He walked into the living room, his eyes quickly scouring the scene, Hangi in tow behind him.

Without a sound, which was quite unusual, Hangi always fantasized about blood, she approached the destructed wall. She braced herself against the wall as she leaned over the mantel, her mouth opening and her tongue tracing the written letters. Hangi closed her eyes as the taste of fresh blood entered her taste buds.

She turned around to face the group, declaring, "It's O negative."

The brunette thrusted her finger into the air with a smirk. "Now that blood type is rare. We can determine the person who did this, if they used their own blood. If they used someone else's..." Her voice stooped to a low whisper. "Well that would be a problem."

Levi turned to face the three teenagers, who were still trembling.

Without even a second glance, Levi outstretched his hand and it met Eren's cheek with force, the sound of the slap resonating across the quiet room.

Mikasa immediately shook off her dazed appearance and lunged at Levi. Armin wrapped his arms around the furious girl and held her back by the shoulders as she protested, "Armin let me go!! He hit Eren! For no reason! Let me go goddammit!!"

Eren leaned against the wall as he nursed his assaulted cheek, his multicolored eyes glaring at the shorter male.

Levi stood back, placing his hands on his hips, clearly enjoying the scene before him. "We're assassins. Blood shouldn't be so surprising to see. Stop trembling like scared dogs!" He closed his eyes and brought a hand to his face. "I know, this is hard on everyone, but we have to remain sane."

"Still that was no reason to hit me." Eren growled.

"I had every right to hit you...." Levi turned around without another word, but Armin swore he heard Levi mutter under his breath, "For being so damn cute."

Levi headed towards the bathroom, the sound of cabinets opening and closing making it's way to the living room.

"What is he doing?" Mikasa asked, finally calm.

Levi entered the room with sponges and a caddy full of cleaning supplies. "What does it look like I'm doing?" He shoved the caddy in Mikasa's face. "We're going to clean this shit up."

Mikasa took the caddy with widened eyes and without another word. Levi turned towards the wall and started scrubbing at it, mumbling sentences that sounded like, "Disgusting little shits. Why couldn't they have used something else? Blood is so typical."

Hangi joined him, the two adults cleaning the wall simultaneously; as if they did this on a daily basis.

Levi turned around, his scowl making the teens jump. "Aren't you going to join us? We don't have to clean your fucking wall."

The three high schoolers stared at each, then shrugged, the motion saying, "Why not?"

They went to join the other Titans, their teamwork paying off in the end.

Afterwards, they all sat around the kitchen table, enjoying a dinner that Levi managed to make with the contents of Eren and Mikasa's fridge.

But the peace didn't last long as they enjoyed their food, their minds eventually drifting to the reason why they were gathered at the siblings Titans' house.

"What do you suppose _'The hunters will be hunted'_ means?" Armin asked.

"Perhaps it pertains to us, meaning that us, The Titans, who hunt for the government, will be hunted ourselves." Levi answered briskly.

"Is it because we know to much already?" Hangi asked.

"The thing is, how did they know we found out how it was all connected?" Armin asked.

Levi's eyes darkened. "This shows that the government is _always_ watching." 

Eren muttered under his breath, "Those perverts."

"Maybe they're watching us especially because of our position. We might commit treason." Hangi reasoned.

"I don't think it's considered treason if we are discovering what this country is doing." Mikasa mumbled.

"You know what, what Levi said earlier is right." Eren blurted. Levi raised his eyebrow, but said nothing."We shouldn't be afraid of the government."

Levi rolled his eyes. "Thats not what I _meant_ , brat."

"But, shouldn't we be afraid of the government? I mean they are the ones who gave us the power." Armin pointed out.

"Yes, it's like an employee being apprehensive about his employer." Mikasa added.

"If the government has the power to hire a group of assassins to do their bidding, then we _should be_ afraid." Armin whispered quietly.

"I wonder what they're hiding from us." Mikasa said.

"It must be something they don't want us to exploit if they're willing to go this far." Levi pointed out.

"But what _is_ the government doing? We need to find out." Hangi said.

"How will we? It's not as if they have this information lying around!" Levi snapped.

"Any way we _can_." Hangi smirked.

The Titans all stared at each other, nodding in unison at Hangi's statement. in utter silence, it was decided that The Titans would find out what the government was doing beneath their citizen's noses.

 

That's when it all started: the race to find information, the information that would inevitably get them killed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is probably going to be about how all of The Titans became recruited, so you guys can look forward to that.  
> Thank you for reading, and have a fantabulous day/night!!! ^-^


	5. Backstories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a wonderful trip down memory lane~ (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys! Thank you so much for reading! I appreciate every single comment I get, so thank you!!!  
> I'm sorry this took forever Q^Q  
> I was planning to make all of the back-stories into one chapter, but this chapter is already pretty long as it is so I decided not to.  
> To make up for all of those cliffhangers and short chapters here is a semi- long chapter ^-^  
> Enjoy~

_Paris, France_

"Hey you! Get back here!"

Levi almost turned around, gritting his teeth and thinking, _'Shit!'_

The lights of the houses in the neighborhood turned on simultaneously, illuminating his presence. Levi ran, his bag of goods clinking against his thigh where it was tied around his belt loop. He made his way through the shadows, running away from the crime scene.

Levi heard the approaching townspeople and he took the route back home where he knew the townspeople wouldn't dare venture. He weaved his way through all of the buildings, cursing the bag of stolen items for being so damn loud. He moved quickly through the allies which stunk of trash, a frequent place where gangs of Paris met up.

Levi was lucky because tonight wasn't a night where they loitered around, bugging unfortunate tourists. They always tried to persuade him to join their ranks, but Levi always passed. He only worked for himself and only himself.

Levi climbed the fire escape of a stout building and made it to the roof. He ran across the roof of the buildings, jumping over thin allies and continuing to make his getaway. He was a creature of the night and never was seen against the pale moonlight.

But right as he was jumped off the last building he needed to get to the town square, where he would be safe, he felt a loud sound and blinding pain in his left calf.

Levi crumpled to the ground in agony, his body hitting the cobblestone street hard. He yelped, holding his calf and shaking when he found that his hand was drenched with blood.

He felt someone kneel besides him and take the bag that had been irritating him earlier. A face appeared in front of him; a chiseled face with bright blue eyes.

"You murdered and stole that man's prized possessions didn't you?" He said, his eyes twinkling.

"Did you shoot me?" Levi choked out, ignoring the man's accusation.

Why did this man even have to _ask_ , of course it was him!

He was the only damn person in France who went to great lengths just to earn money, and who did it stealthily.

Well, not so stealthily this time.

"Yes, but only to get your attention." The man said sympathetically.

"You could have tapped me on the shoulder or something, you bastard!" Levi yelled.

The man laughed and leaned in even closer to Levi's face. "Do you know who you're calling a bastard?" Levi thought about this.

Who the fuck _was_ this guy?

"No." He answered blatantly.

"I'm the president of the United States of America. You've heard of me, right?" The man's eyes twinkled again and he smiled softly.

Levi was at a loss of words.

The president of the United _fucking_ States?

No way.

"Stop trying to trick me, you asshole." Levi growled.

The man laughed, "You don't believe me? Didn't you watch the news on the television today?"

Levi thought back to this morning, and his eyes widened. He remembered sitting at the table and sipping his coffee, and watching as the president of the United States shook hands with the prime minister and president of the Republic of France. He remembered the tall blonde man with blue eyes, his face too handsome to not go unnoticed.

The same blue eyes shone in the darkness of the alley at Levi, and he smiled. "Do you remember me now?" He asked.

"President Erwin Smith of the United States of America. Yes, I remember. But why are you here?" Levi breathed.

"Well, let's just say I came here to offer you an opportunity." Erwin smiled.

Behind that smile Levi could detect many gears turning around in the man's head. "Why don't you go to the United States? There are plenty of jobs you can take up there. If you go to the United States, then maybe," Erwin's eyes twinkled with what Levi thought was malice. "I'll have another job for you in a few years."

Levi thought this over. If he left to the United States and got a job, he could earn enough money to support himself and Isabel and Farlan.

But then again, he just can't leave them.

"I can't do that, sorry." Levi said.

Erwin's huffed, "Why do you murder people, then steal their stuff after?"

"To support my family." Levi blurted.

He realized it was a mistake as Erwin smiled again. "Well if you move to the United States, I'll send your family some money every month so they have enough to eat. That is, _only_ if you go."

"Why do you want me to move so badly?" Levi asked.

"I might have a job opening in a few years, and you seem like the person I might want to take it. You have the abilities I'm looking for." He responded.

Levi sighed in defeat and ran his fingers through his hair. "You said money every month right?"

Erwin nodded and Levi sat up. "Fine, I'll move. Just make sure I get that job, alright?"

Levi stuck out his hand and Erwin shook it, "That is, only if your skills get better."

Levi struggled to stand up and leaned against the building besides him, "Don't worry, Mr. President, I'll get better, don't you worry."

Erwin smirked and wagged his finger at him. "Let's wait and see."

Then he disappeared into the night, the street lamps illuminating him as he walked alone through the streets of Paris.

"The coast is clear." Levi whispered.

As soon as the words left his mouth he saw two figures fall from the roof of the building he was leaning against. "Did you hear the conversation, Isabel, Farlan?"

The two figures lifted their faces, revealing a petite girl with green eyes and red hair in messy pigtails and a tall boy with blonde hair so pale it was almost white.

"Yep!" Isabel smiled. "By the way, how did you know we were watching?"

Levi smiled and reached out to ruffle Isabel's hair to make it even messier than it already was. "I know you Isabel. Whenever you hear anything suspicious, like a gunshot, you go out to investigate." Levi gestured to Farlan. "And you drag this idiot with you."

"Hey!" Farlan laughed.

"Are you really going to leave, big brother?" Isabel whined. There were tears in her big green eyes and she sniffed.

"Well, imagine what I could do with money. If I get myself a job in the United States," Levi untied the bag of goods from the belt loop of his jeans. "I won't have to steal and murder anymore just to get us some food to eat."

"Plus," Farlan pressed Isabel to his side. "You heard what the guy said. Big brother can get two jobs and earn twice the money! Wouldn't you like to have a few more sweets to eat every now and then?"

Isabel nodded and the glee in her eyes made Farlan and Levi chuckle.

"What job should I apply for?" Levi wondered aloud.

"Ooh! I know!" Isabel jumped. "You're good at singing! You used to sing lullabies all the time so I could sleep, big brother! Remember?"

Levi nodded and smiled. "Yes, I do, but singing is just a hobby of mine. I don't imagine I can make a living out of it."

"Yes you can! If you believe! _Believe_ it big brother!!" Isabel tugged on Levi's arm, and a spurt of pain shot down his leg.

Levi cried out in pain as he remembered that he had a piece of metal stuck in his leg.

Farlan wrapped his arm around Levi's shoulder. "C'mon big bro, let's treat your wound and we can discuss about how we're getting you to the _U.S.A._ "

The three of them walked down the street together, Levi hobbling and balancing himself on Farlan's shoulder.

"Still, I don't get why he had to shoot me." Levi grumbled.

~

_3 months later_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

Levi was wandering the streets, his hands jammed in his pockets. He exhaled, able to see his breath. Levi shivered and thought about how it never was this cold in France. He had managed to find himself a few jobs that would take him, a French teenager who had dropped out of high school and hardly knows how to speak English, a waiter, a janitor, etc. He managed to scoop up enough money to send back home and for himself.

But Levi felt that he needed something...more.

Levi smiled as reminisced all of the good memories of his foreign home.

Playing cards with Farlan, playing obnoxious games with Isabel, and singing Isabel to sleep...

He smiled as the lyrics of the lullabies came to his mind. Levi sang the lullaby under his breath, the sound of the familiar song making him smile.

_Fais dodo,_

_'Colas, mon p'tit frère,_

_Fais dodo,_

_t'auras du lolo._

_Maman est en haut, qui fait du gateau;_

_Papa est en bas,_

_qu'il fait du chocolat..._

When Levi finished the song he closed my eyes and imagined Isabel falling asleep. Levi felt a hand on my shoulder and he turned around, his eyes narrowed.

Three men and a woman stood before him, their eyes full of happiness.

"What do you want?" Levi snapped.

The man who had placed his hand on my shoulder looked taken aback at his outburst, but explained himself. "Sorry, to bother you but, we heard you singing and..." He trailed off and stood staring at Levi.

"It was beautiful." The woman smiled and stuck out her hand.

"Hi, my name's Petra." She pointed at the men besides her. "This is Erd, Gunter, and Auruo."

Levi reluctantly shook her hand and the other men's, who also had refrained from doing so until Petra nudged them.

"Nice to meet you." The man named Erd smiled.

Petra smiled and began her explanation,"We're forming a band called the Survey Corps, but we need a singer. We were walking around hearing all of the street performers, but then we heard you and..." She trailed off and I could see her face blushing.

"We would like to give you an opportunity to be our lead singer." The man named Gunter finished.

Levi's eyes widened.

_Was this what he had wanted when he had thought he needed more?_

_For his hobby to finally earn him some money?_

Levi bit his lip and stared at Petra, who was patiently waiting for his answer. "I'll think about it. Why don't I give you a call when I've decided?"

Petra and Levi exchanged numbers and the band walked away and Levi could hear them muttering as they left his presence.

_"Why would we want him? He scared the shit out of me!"_

_"Stop it Auruo. You've got to admit, he sings better than you do."_

_"Petra, Auruo's kind of right. He was kinda scary."_

_"No he wasn't!"_

_"You're only defending him because you've got the hots for him."_

_"N-No I don't! Shut up Erd!"_

 

Levi chuckled to himself softly as he made his way to his apartment.

_Should he take this opportunity to be more for his family?_

~

_1 year later_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

"Let's take it from the top guys!" Levi yelled.

Gunter and Erd set the beat and Leiv swung his hips with it, concentrating on his timing. Him, Auruo and Petra came in at the same time and Levi sang into the microphone, his feelings escaping from his vocal chords and brushing past his lips.

Levi was so glad he had taken the chance to become the lead singer for the Survey Corps. As soon as he became their singer they began to take up gigs and they became very popular. Now they were an internationally known band, and even Isabel and Farlan know who they are. Isabel, of course is a ginormous fan.

The moment he called Petra about he job she immediately set up a practice so that they could show Levi their skills. Erd played the drums, Gunter played the bass, Auruo played the lead electric guitar and Petra was the rhythm electric guitar.

Petra had shown him some songs that she had written that he could sing. Levi had explained that he was still getting used to the English language and that he might have trouble singing the foreign words. Petra had told him that singing in English would help him improve the way he spoke.

They had started out small, their songs basic and the music simple. But the more they played for people, the easier it got to play harder and more complicated music.

One day, someone came to one of their gigs and gave them the chance to record their music. They had immediately taken the offer and recorded their music and immediately the label signed them on.

They released their single, _Breaking the Walls_ , and gained instant popularity.

Isabel had sent Levi a letter, nagging him about how she told him that he could make a living out of his singing and about how she was always right. Levi hadn't become accustomed to the popularity overnight, and the first time someone asked for his autograph in public he almost gasped and cried with happiness.

~

_3 1/2 years later_

_Stohess, United States of America_

"Thank you Stohess!" Levi roared into the microphone, lifting it above his head and the crowd went wild.

Levi turned around and closed his eyes as the red velvet curtain dropped. Levi walked over to the drum set and grabbed the water bottle and towel he had left near its base.

He sat down and chugged down the liquid, the plastic bottle crushing in his grip. After he finished he wiped down his face with the towel and laid against the stage floor him and the Survey Corps had been performing on.

He watched the crew move their instruments and clean the stage and sat there until their manager, Nifa, came to scold him about being in the crew's way.

Levi exited the stage and went into his dressing room, collapsing in the chair in front of the mirror with lightbulbs lining it's frame.

He changed into something less sweaty and stared at his reflection in the mirror.

The smeared eyeliner around his eyes made his sapphire blue eyes stand out and the rings in his eyebrow and the snake bites under his lips made his features colder. His black hair had had an undercut even when he was living in France, but now he had cut the longer hair even shorter and his bangs fell into his eyes.

Levi stood up and examined himself in further in the dirty mirror.

He wore a multiple collars loosely around neck that fell to his collar bone, which was exposed due to the gray muscle shirt Levi was wearing. Levi had put on one of his favorite leather jacket on top of it; short-sleeved number that was also small in length. He had lost his other one crowd surfing tonight; the fangirls were crazy in Stohess!

Tattoos covered both of his arms, but weren't that exposed with Levi's arm warmers. They were very vintage, but he didn't care about fashion. He sometimes made holes in them when he felt they were needed.

Levi's black jeans rode low on his hips along with multiple loose belts. Levi occasionally doodled on his pairs of jeans, and on these he had drawn some spirals and some symbols he had come up with.

His black combat boots wound up his legs until they hit his knee. There were studs on he toes and they were easily his favorite show accessory. Walking around onstage in them made him feel like a leader, the rest of the band his subordinates, and the crowd his underlings.

And last of all, Levi's eyes rested on the accessory that felt cold against his chest, even with the cloth dividing it and his bare skin. It was his necklace of the _Wings of Freedom_ ; the United States of America's flag rested against his chest and Levi contemplated the reason of why he wore it.

He had an attachment to this country for some odd reason. Maybe because it had let him in one if the darkest times and one of the lightest times of his life, or maybe because what it represented. The flag, and the whole country represented freedom; and that was what Levi had needed. Levi could agree with anyone that he changed a lot over the past few years, his style, the way he looked at people, the way he talked, almost everything. Isabel liked to say that the only thing that didn't change was his heart, but Levi liked to say that he didn't have one.

Levi rested against his chair again and sighed. He waited for Nifa to come and tell him that they were ready to go, his eyes burning as he stared at the ceiling. Usually this could take few minutes, or a few hours. Once Levi became restless with waiting, he exited his dressing room and into the part of the venue where the people attending the concerts sat.

Usually any performer would hang around with his band-mates, or talk to the crew, but Levi was too antisocial for that. It's not that he didn't talk to the rest of the band, no they were really tight after the last 4 years, but he was usually too tired to talk and instead came to help clean the venue.

The rows of chairs were filthy and disgusting, the floor underneath sticky with only god knows what. To calm Levi's OCD down, he came and scrubbed the floor and helped clean the chairs. The janitors were very grateful, but Levi always thought it was nothing. It was just to satisfy his conscience, not to give anybody any relief. But the magazines always took this the wrong way, saying that Levi was the most kindhearted lead singer ever seen.

Boy, were they wrong.

He took some of the janitors' supplies out of a closet backstage and walked quickly through the rows of seats, deciding on a place to start. He scrubbed at the floor, making sure the floor was spotless.

When he was 7 rows up, he saw someone standing besides him, making the floor he had just cleaned dirty.

"You know cleaning isn't going to help anyone right? The floor is just going to get dirty again."

The familiar voice taunted him and Levi rose his eyes to the face that irritated him to no end.

Auruo stuck a cigarette in his mouth and lit it, smirking at Levi's cold stare. "You know you're going to die quicker with that shit right?"

It was showing, Auruo was actually younger than Levi, but lines were already etched on his face and his eyes were sunken in.

And the boy was still a teenager!

People often mistook Auruo as the oldest of the group, when in reality he was the youngest.

"Yeah, but I honestly don't give a shit." Auruo rolled his eyes and took the cigarette out of his mouth, exhaling smoke. "The only reason I came to talk you, asshole, was because Nifa says there's someone here to see you and that they're waiting in your dressing room."

Levi's anger anger dissipated as he stood up, cleaning his hands on his pants. "Somebody's here to see me?"

"I didn't fucking stutter." Auruo snapped.

Levi rolled my eyes and pushed past him, abandoning the cleaning supplies on the floor. He made his way backstage again and stood outside his dressing room door.

_Who would be here to see Levi?_

Levi took a deep breath and opened the door, his eyes widening when he saw who was sitting in chair opposite of his.

"It's been some time, Levi." Erwin smiled.

"Yeah..." Levi breathed.

"My, you've changed a lot in the last few years, haven't you?" Erwin smiled, folding his hands in his lap. Erwin stood up and walked toward Levi. He took a step back but Erwin came closer.

Erwin reached up and brushed away some bangs that had fallen into Levi's face. "To be honest, I think you look better now than the last time we met. My, America has done you well. Your French accent has gone though, what a shame."

Erwin sat back down and Levi sat down in his chair in front of him.

"Why are you here, Mr. President?" Levi asked, cocking his head to the side, trying to fight away the blush on his cheeks.

"Well, remember our deal 4 years ago?" Erwin replied.

Levi nodded, rifling through shelves of memories that had occupied his mind since then.

"Well, I said that I would get you another job, so," Erwin put his hands up in the air and smirked. "Here I am."

"What's the job? Will it earn me more money than I have now?" Levi asked.

Levi wasn't greedy, he just wanted to support his family even better.

Erwin smirked agin and nodded. "You're going back to Shiganshina after today, correct?"

Levi nodded and Erwin began to explain, "Well for this particular job, you'll be working in a group with abilities just like yours. You can easily kill, and clean up the mess so it looks like nothing. Before I went to France, I had heard about you. And I knew I needed you. I didn't know who you were, your name, or anything else about you. I just needed to see if you would take my offer. You see, I need a group of assassins. There are too many threatening people in my country, that need to be eliminated. If you take this job, you will be helping mankind, and be helping to create a brighter, safer future."

Erwin stared at Levi as his words processed in his mind. "What do you think of the job?"

Levi thought about it; he would earn more money than ever before.

Levi could send a lot more to Isabel and Farlan; they could be rich!

And all he had to do was kill people, just like he used to.

"I'll take it."

Erwin smiled and clasped Levi's hands in his and shook them. "Thank you Levi. I will be scheduling a meeting with the rest of your assassin group, so I will contact you. Thank you for helping me out."

Erwin stood up and was about to leave when Levi called out, "Wait."

Erwin turned back around, "Yes?"

"How do you know my name?" Levi asked.

Erwin smirked again.

Man, what was up with those?!

"Who hasn't heard of _you_ , Levi?"

And he left, leaving Levi in complete silence, just like last time.

~

_The present_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

Levi plopped down on his couch, closing his eyes and thinking about why he actually joined The Titans.

Now that he thinks about it, he doesn't think he joined because of the money.

Maybe it was to satisfy his killing urges that he hadn't thought about it in a while.

But now Levi came to the realization of why he had felt so betrayed when they started looking for information.

He joined The Titans to serve his country; to help the country that turned his life around.

He had fallen in love with this country, and now it broke his heart to doubt it.

~

_Los Angeles, California, United States of America_

_A 10 year old girl's Point of View_

"Daddy, can we go swimming tomorrow?"

My dad laughed and nodded his head. "Of course, but now we have to go home."

"But why?!" I whined.

"We have to go eat dinner. And it's getting late, so you'll have to go to bed afterwards."

He replied.

I groaned, but nodded.

We walked through the sand, and up the boardwalk, the beautiful sunset behind us disappearing from view as we walked back home.

We lived by the ocean, and I loved it. I loved the ocean; it's scent, the way the waves crash on the shore, the creatures that explore its depths; I love it all. I love swimming and feeling like I'm delving into the unknown.

We walked inside the brightly lit house, the sound of cheerful chattering and plates clinking against the table filling the air. The aroma of food pierced my nose and made my mouth water.

"Oh! You guys were almost late for dinner!" My mother said.

My brother and baby sister were already seated, their food untouched in front of them.

Mom was still wavering around the kitchen, now serving Dad and I's plates.

I plopped down in my seat at the table and sighed in content when my steaming plate of food was set in front of me.

When everyone was seated, we joined hands and thanked God for our food.

Then we dug in, talking and laughing as we ate.

These were the happy, peaceful times of my life.

The rest just went downhill from here.

After dinner I got ready for bed, brushing my teeth and putting on my pajamas. My dad came in to tuck me in, and he kissed my forehead and whispered, "Goodnight, sweet dreams. I love you."

Then he turned off the light and shut the door.

I fell asleep right away, happiness enclosing me into a deep slumber.

~

_Later that night_

I was jolted awake when a shriek echoed inside of my subconscious.

My eyes flickered open and I stood still, listening if the scream was only my imagination. I rubbed my eyes and sat up in bed, slowly swinging my legs over the side of it.

_Who could have made that sound?_

I opened my bedroom door and as my eyes adjusted to the change of setting, I saw a shadow flicker from my view.

My eyes widened as I saw a person dressed all in black round the corner of the hallway. It's black sleeve was pushed up, revealing the blood red symbol of a lion on his forearm. In his hand he carried a butcher knife, one I recognized from our own kitchen.

I stood, rooted to the floor, my vision tilting sideways.

I watched as the figure weaved its way through the living room to the open window across the table my family had been eating on only hours earlier. The figure sat on the windowsill, and sensing my presence, turned around. The person was wearing a black hood over its face, and the only thing I could see was a cruel smile that showed so much malice I almost collapsed. I watched as the figure flew through the window, but I was paralyzed and my heart was racing.

I heard the shriek from earlier, and I identified it belonging to my baby sister. I ran to her room and practically kicked the door open.

In her crib, I could see from the doorway the crimson stain growing in her pink sheets. I walked slowly to her, and picked her up, the dent in her skill visible from miles away. My breath caught in my throat and I almost dropped my sister's corpse.

I had been too late.

I exited the room and stumbled to my brother's room.

Surely he and my parents weren't killed also...

I ran into the room and almost fainted when I saw him in a contorted position, the slit in his throat leaking what seemed like gallons of blood, which trickled off the bed and into a puddle on the floor.

I moved in what seemed like a trance to my parent's bedroom, gulping as I pushed the door open. My mother lay across the floor and her body blocked the door from opening completely. I had to push her body a bit so that I could see the entire room.

My mother lay in a heap near the bedside, her head smashed in and her brains splattered across the tile.

My dad was hung up on the wall like a display, a knife in his throat and head, the only thing keeping him on its surface.

I walked slowly out of the room and ran to the bathroom covering my mouth, tears escaping my eyes.

I didn't make it to the toilet and vomited in the hallway, the grotesque images of my family's dead bodies burning in the back of my eyes.

~

_Two years later_

_Los Angeles, California, United States of America_

_The Angel's Orphanage for Abandoned Children_

_A 12 year old girl's Point of View_

"Ew here she comes!"

I heard incessant laughter coming from the hallway and I clenched my fists. I rounded the corner and tried to ignore the sound if the boys' snickers and teases.

"She's a witch!"

"She's gross!"

I ran into my room, tears flying from my closed eyes as I slid against the door. I burrowed my face into my knees and tried to disappear.

Ever since my entire family was murdered, I had taken a liking to nature. I would take jars from the kitchen and collect specimen outside in the courtyard. I would dissect them and smile at the sight of their organs. I would show the other kids my accomplishments and they would just call me a witch.

I hated it here, everyone hated me and I knew I would never get adopted. I was fed up with being called a witch; with being bullied; with having to deal with these inconsiderate people.

If only...

No, I shook the thought from my head.

I couldn't do that, I wouldn't.

Dad wouldn't agree with it.

I wiped my eyes and stood up. I made my way to the courtyard, the only place where I could feel my father's presence. I sat down underneath the willow and smiled as I heard the birds chirping.

Dad would have appreciated the sound.

Then suddenly ice cold water was poured all over my body and I struggled to breathe as it kept on cascading down in a waterfall.

When it finally stopped I stood up spluttering, trying to peer through my wet hair. I looked up in the trees to see the boys giggling to themselves with an empty barrel.

"Witch! Why aren't you melting!" They yelled.

I ran away, covering my ears as their taunts seem to follow me.

_"Witch!"_

_"Melt!"_

_**"Witch!"** _

I locked myself in my room once more, staring at my reflection in the dirty mirror.

A 12 year old girl stood before me, soaking wet, her T-shirt and jeans stuck to her. Her ponytail had come undone and her brown matted hair was stuck to her head in clumps. Her eyes were puffy and red, and snot was dribbling down her nose.

Dad might not agree with my idea but it's worth a shot.

~

I glared at my watch as I willed it to tick faster.

I walked through the hallway, gripping my two pitchers of _'lemonade'_ with clammy hands. It was dinner time, and I, as always, was late.

But this _'lemonade'_ would make up for it.

I walked into the dining hall and smiled at everyone. "Hey you guys!"

The whole orphanage stopped eating and glared at me.

I held up the pitchers of lemonade and shook them, some of the liquid spilling over the rim. "I made some lemonade!! Want some?"

The kids looked at each other, sharing a knowing look, then back at me.

They nodded and I smiled.

I took some styrofoam cups from the kitchen ad handed them all out.

Then one by one I served the lemonade, the hidden joke in it all almost making me burst out in laughter.

Once everyone had taken a sip, the room was filled with kids even under the age of 7 years old convulsing and choking on their own blood.

I watched in silence as there were more gurgling and screams, then everyone eventually became motionless.

Once I was sure that everyone in the room was dead, I abandoned the pitchers of lemonade and went to go check on the bomb I had hidden in my room.

I walked into the room and went to my nightstand, where I had taped it to the bottom of the drawer.

The clock read 1:59.

I smirked and left the room, closing the door behind me a final time.

I took my time leaving the building, skipping in the hallways, not afraid to burn to a crisp like the rest of the corpses would when it finally exploded.

I made my way out the door and continued to walk; through the courtyard and out the gates that read: _Every child deserves someone._

Bullshit.

I was halfway across the street when the building I had hated so much finally was destroyed.

I heard the loudest noise possible and I was almost pretty sure I had lost my hearing.

I turned around to view my marvelous work and I cackled when I saw the place where I never belonged only a skeleton of what it was.

Flames licked the walls of the wooden building and the wind blew in my hair as I raised my arms in the air.

Yes, Dad _definitely_ would not approve of what I had done.

I doubled over and laughed as sirens pierced through the night.

The fire seemed to glow brighter as the stars began to show themselves.

I continued to laugh, even when I was tackled to the ground and my wrists were bound.

Even when they wrapped a cloth around my mouth and around my head, my laugh was still audible as the flames reached higher than the moon.

~

_6 years later_

_An unknown location_

"Sir, you mustn't go in."

The 18 year old girl sat alone in the white padded room; her arms wrapped around her body in a white straitjacket. Her long, brown hair covered her face and it trailed down her back.

Everything in the room was white, even the light, which was blinding, seemed to be white.

The girl could hear the voices echoing outside her cell, and she smirked when they continued to discuss her.

"But I must."

"Mr. Smith, this girl was only 12 years old when she poisoned all of the orphans at her orphanage. Then she made a bomb and blew up the whole building. She's mentally ill; she has been ever since her family was murdered when she was 10. Are you sure you want to speak with her?"

"Yes, it's very urgent."

"Well, alright then."

The sound of the metal door at the corner of the room reverberated across the padded room and the girl hid her face.

A man walked into the room; tall, blonde, and blue eyes.

The girl didn't make a move as the man walked towards her.

"Hello," He said. "My name is Erwin Smith. Have you heard of me?"

The girl stayed quiet and after a moment of silence the man laughed.

"Well I suppose you haven't, after all I was elected into office while you were locked up here. I'm the president of the United States."

The girl still said nothing.

The man kneeled in front of her, but the girl refused to look at the man in the eyes. "You were only 12 years old when you killed your friends, right?"

"They weren't my friends." The girl spat.

Erwin smirked as he finally got a response from the sullen girl. "How did you find out that potassium cyanide was deadly to people?"

The girl was quiet until she sighed. "Are you interrogating me again?"

"No, I just wanted to confirm what I've heard, and how you did it. After all," The man smiled and tilted his face towards the girl. "It's pretty amazing that a 12 year old could find out these things."

The girl finally relented, "I snuck out of the orphanage and went to the library every night. I would read up on the poisons and the librarian never saw me. I would disguise the books behind other books normal kids would read. I also read up on how to make bombs and how they worked in a few more books."

Erwin clicked his tongue, "But how did you read them all without bringing them home?"

"I read really fast and I have a photographic memory. Reading them was easy."

Erwin laughed. "Wow, you have amazing researching skills, don't you?" Then his voice changed into a more serious tone. "I also heard you believed in a God, is that true also?"

The girl nodded. "Yes, I did, but I have long forsaken him. _If he truly did love me, then why was all of my family murdered?_ " The girl shook, the straitjacket stretching as her arms tried moving in rage. " _Why was I taken to a place where everybody bullied me?! Why was I declared mentally ill, and taken away to a place where I was also treated miserably?! If he loves me then why isn't he here right now?!_ "

Suddenly Erwin tilted the girl's chin forward, so her face was now visible to him, tears and all. "Your forsaken god is giving you another chance. I'm getting you out of here, and when I do, you'll make a life out of yourself with the things you love. I'll destroy all records of you ever being born, and you can live a better life, as a brand new person."

Erwin pressed the bound girl to his chest and held her as she cried.

He finally let go and brushed the long hair out of her face, so he could see her big brown eyes that used to be dull, but were now bright and filled with hope.

"From today on out, your name will be Hangi Zoe, and you will be free."

The girl nodded, tears of joy slipping down her cheeks as she beamed. "I like that name, my lord."

~

_4 years later_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

"Moblit, get the tongs!"

Hangi stood working over the dead fish, shivering in delight when she felt the cool metal being pressed against her palm. "Now let's see what this bad boy has inside of him!"

"Ms. Hangi!"

Hangi turned around, placing her hand son her hips. "What is it Nanaba?"

The taller blonde cleared her throat. "Um there's someone here to see you."

"What? Why _now_?" Hangi whined.

Nanaba shrugged and Hangi put the tongs back down on the table, looking at the fish with despair.

She patted the dead fish, whispering, "I'll be back for ya little guy."

She left the room, throwing her gloves in the trash can on her way out. Hangi made her way to her office, where she supposed the visitor might be waiting.

She opened the door and almost fell to her knees when she saw who it was.

"Erwin Smith?"

The blonde man was sitting in a chair that someone must have brought into her office across her desk chair.

Hangi practically collapsed into her chair as she stared at the man with wide eyes. "What do I owe the presence of you, my lord?"

Erwin smiled and clasped his hands together. "I see you have become quite the person over the last few years, huh Hangi?"

"Yes, my lord." Hangi nodded, smiling.

"Scientists earn a lot of money, you must have a lot in you bank account, yes?" Erwin asked.

"No, my lord." Hangi answered sheepishly. "I spend most of my money on science equipment and new lab coats."

"Do you destroy most of them, or?"

Hangi laughed. "Yes, my lord. Most of my experiments explode and we're running out of fire extinguishers."

Erwin chuckled. "Well, I did hear there was a science lab around here that got frequent visits from the fire department. I didn't imagine it would be yours."

"Anyways, I came here to offer you a job."

"A job, my lord?" Hangi quirked her eyebrow.

"Yes, I need someone with your particularly set of skills, researching, to be a part of a very important group that will benefit humanity." Erwin explained.

"I will do whatever you need me to do, my lord." Hangi answered without even a second thought.

"Hangi, are you alright with becoming an assassin? And with killing people again?" Erwin asked.

"Anything for you, my lord." Hangi replied.

Erwin clapped his hands and smiled. "Great! I'll be contacting you with more information." He sat up from his chair to stand up, but Hangi held her palm up in the air, telling him to stop.

She stood up first, tucking her desk chair underneath the desk behind her and kneeling.

She took Erwin's hands in her's and kissed it, murmuring into the back of his hand, "I will forever remain loyal to you, my lord."

Erwin smirked. "Excellent."

~

_The present_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

Hangi shrugged off her lab coat, throwing it on the floor as she collapsed onto her bed.

This couldn't be her lord's doing, right?

Erwin had saved her, he rebuilt her life, and she owed her loyalty to the president for that.

When she thought her life had been over; when she had disgraced the name her parents gave her, she nearly sunk into a fathomless hole of depression and self-loathing.

But here, her lord had appeared, and now she was Hangi Zoe, an aspiring scientist and an assassin.

Her lord couldn't be doing things like this right?

Why _exactly_ did she join this group of assassins?

Deep down, she knew it was for something more than loyalty for her lord.

It was revenge.

Deep down, she had been waiting for what seemed like an eternity over this 1 1/2 year to be ordered to give judgment to the man who brutally slaughtered her family.

Deep down, she wanted to kill the man with the bloody lion tattoo on his forearm; she needed vengeance.

And she was going to get it, no matter what.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here are some explanations:
> 
> Levi: a thug from France, only stealing to support his family. Moves to the U.S.A. because of a deal with Erwin Smith, the president of the U.S.A. He becomes the lead singer of the Survey Corps, and becomes an assassin for The Titans.  
> Desired Motive: To support his family
> 
> Real Motive: To serve his country
> 
> Hangi (not her parent-given name):an orphan from Los Angeles. Discovers her family's bodies in the middle of the night and is scarred for the rest of her life. Is transferred to The Angel's Orphanage for Abandoned Children and is bullied by her fellow orphans. It soon becomes too much for her to bear and she researches about the threat of potassium cyanide and fixes it in an innocent batch of lemonade, which she serves to her tormentors. She also reads up about how to make bombs, and she blows up the crime scene. She gets away with reading about all of the deadly materials because of her photographic memory. She is declared mentally ill and is transferred to a mental institute in an unknown location and is locked up for 6 years until Erwin Smith pays her a visit. He gives her the chance to become a new person and gives her the name she now currently holds: Hangi Zoe. Hangi now is taken to addressing the president as 'her lord' because of all he has given her.
> 
> Desired motive: Loyalty to her lord
> 
> Real motive: Revenge, in hopes she will be ordered to kill the murderer of her family.


	6. Backstories cont'd

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A wonderful trip down memory lane~ (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys! ^-^  
> I am so so so so so sorry about the lack of posts!!  
> I haven't posted in forever and I feel really bad ;-;  
> Please forgive me, but I have been really busy with school!
> 
> I hope you enjoy this chapter despite all of the time I took making it!!~
> 
> (By the way, Armin's story will be included in the next chapter. I just really wanted to post, so here you go!)

_Outskirts of Maria, United States of America_

Mikasa sat at the back of the school bus, trying to ignore the stares of the kid on the bus with her.

It had been an uneventful day, despite the fact that she beat up a kid for calling her a worthless Asian.

Everyone was surprised at her strength, even the teacher when she tried to pull Mikasa apart from the foolish boy.

And now everyone was afraid of the shy, quiet, raven haired girl who sat at the back of the classroom, and also the bus.

The only ones who really understood her was her parents, and she couldn't express in words how much she loved them.

The bus stopped and with one glance out the window, Mikasa stood up and made her way to the front of the bus.

She climbed off the vehicle without another look to anyone and practically ran down the sidewalk to her house.

 

Mikasa pulled on the heavy wooden door, but found it was locked.

She fished the keys her mom had given her just a few days ago, for times when Mikasa would come home and nobody was home, and unlocked the door. Which was weird, because her mother's car was in the driveway.

She quickly burst into the home, singing, "I'm home!"

Mikasa expected a response from somewhere inside the house, a "Welcome back!" or a "How was your day?", but instead she was met with the sight of her ransacked home.

The whole house was trashed, glass was shattered on the floor, the couch and coffe table in the living room was overturned, and all of the drawers and cupboards in the kitchen were wide open, all of their contents scattered around the room.

There was blood splattered on the wall, and Mikasa could tell they formed words, but she couldn't understand what they meant.

Mikasa was frozen and soon she was being clutched to somebody's chest. She screamed, but her cries were muffled when a sweet-smelling rag was pressed against her nose and mouth.

Mikasa couldn't help but smile as her eyes closed simultaneously and wonder why it smelled like her mother.

~

_Some time later_

_An unknown location_

Mikasa's eyes opened and she groggily moaned.

She noticed that she was sitting on a floor and against a wooden wall. Mikasa felt an ache in her wrists as she pulled against the shackles that had her pinned to the surface.

She could hear a booming voice on a microphone, but she could barely tell what the person was saying. Her mind could only process the snippets of sentences and words that sounded very weird in her head.

Mikasa closed her eyes as the words caused her a headache.

_"Very rare!"_

_"For sale...auction...bid."_

_"A beauty....untouched."_

_"Oh....awake!"_

Mikasa opened her eyes again only to be met with many others. She noticed that she was on a stage and that everyone was staring at her.

An uneasy feeling crept up her throat and she felt footsteps approach her.

Mikasa pulled against the chains again, crying out when the person with the microphone knelt besides her.

"There's no need to struggle, _sweetie_."

The person laughed, and Mikasa identified this person as a man.

The rest of the audience followed suit, and this made Mikasa want to escape even more.

The man with the microphone ran his fingers through her hair and lifted her chin so she could look at his face.

Except there wasn't a face Mikasa could look at, because this man was wearing a white mask, one dotted with tendrils of paint and sequins.

Mikasa cried out and started to breathe heavily, tears flowing down her face.

She could feel it inside her; something bad was happening.

_Where were her parents?_

_Did these people destroy her loving home?_

"There's not need to cry, sweetie." The man's voice stretched out, too sickly and sweet that made Mikasa cry even more. "We won't hurt you."

The audience laughed and Mikasa knew they were lying.

They were going to hurt her.

They were going to do bad things to her.

The man continued to run his fingers through Mikasa's hair, until they travelled down the side of her face and onto her shoulder.

His hand went under her shirt and when it got closer to her chest she cried out "Stop!"

The man's hand froze and there was more laughing from the audience.

He took his hand from underneath her shirt and slapped her across the cheek. "I don't know if you were taught this or not, Missy, but you are not to defy your elders."

Mikasa tears kept flowing as the man stood up and kicked her. "Do as you're told, or you will get _consequences_."

The man finally left her side and stood to face the audience. "Do we have any buyers for a night?"

A man in the audience raised his hand and yelled, "$150!"

Another man across the room retorted, "$200", the smirk in his voice evident.

The same man form before shouted, "$250!"

The man with the smirk yelled out, "$500!" and the room went silent.

"Sold!" The man with the microphone laughed.

Somebody walked up to her and placed a burlap sack over her head, and the rest Mikasa didn't want to remember ever again.

~

_3 years later_

_An unknown location_

Mikasa was strapped to the wall again, her jaw clenched.

These past years had been the worst of her life.

She had been abused, raped, and sold too many times that she had stopped counting.

Mikasa sighed and rested her head absent the wooden wall that practically had a Mikasa-shaped dent in it.

Which pervert would buy her tonight?

Hardly any of them fed her, or gave her new clothes, or proper undergarments, or at least a bath.

Maybe tonight would be different, maybe any god out there would grant her a miracle.

The familiar voice of the man with the dazzling mask echoed across the room and Mikasa sighed again.

She had become accustomed to the sound of his voice, his taunts, and his moves.

Mikasa never learned his name, not that she wanted to know her seller's name.

Usually she didn't resist him when he touched her, because she knew she would be beaten to a pulp. But occasionally she did because she got bored and was fed up with everything.

Pain was the only reason she knew she was alive, because when she wasn't feeling it she was numb and she would rather feel agony than feel nothing.

Mikasa had zoned out and actually forgot the selling was going on until she heard the dreaded "Sold!" and the burlap sack was draped over her head.

~

_A day later_

_An unknown location_

"You should really shower, God you stink! I don't even know why I bought you!"

The man stood up from the bed and gestured to the restroom adjoined to the bedroom.

"You can use the bathroom. I'm going out to town, stay here until your sellers are here for you. Don't get into trouble, ya hear?"

Mikasa stayed motionless in the bed, even after the man left the house and the front door being locked was audible.

She stood up and walked slowly to the bathroom, running her fingers through her greasy hair.

She went inside the bathroom and quickly got undressed, trying to ignore her bony and bruised self in the mirror.

Mikasa turned on the shower and washed herself thoroughly, sighing in content as the water rolled down her body and licked away the dirt form the previous weeks.

When she finished she put back on her dirty clothes and brushed her hair with the man's comb she found in the bathroom.

She wandered around the house a little bit, looking around at the extravagant paintings the man had hung around his home.

It was the first time someone was idiotic enough to leave her alone in their house.

Mikasa made her way to the kitchen and searched through the refrigerator, and sighed when she found that it was bare.

She wandered the house a little more, looking through the drawers for anything interesting to pass the time.

She went into the garage and looked around.

The man had an assortment of expensive sports cars and Mikasa ached to dent or at least scratch one of them.

She then spotted something on the floor of the garage, and it made her eye widen.

A gun was lying on the ground aimlessly, as if it had been dropped and forgotten.

Mikasa knelt besides the discarded gun and picked it up. She checked it and found that there was 3 bullets inside of it. Her grip hardened on the handle and she put it back down.

What Mikasa was thinking wasn't a good idea.

If she failed they were certain to punish her, or even kill her.

But if she succeeded she would be _free_.

The man said that her sellers would come for her, and maybe she could wait for them with this gun.

Mikasa stood up and ran to the threshold of the house, watching the window for any signs of the sellers.

She waited by the door for what seemed hours, or minutes, she couldn't tell.

Mikasa was shaking so hard and couldn't control herself.

She was going to kill whoever was coming to get her, and she was nervous.

_Was she capable of taking a human's life, no matter how rotten they are?_

Then suddenly Mikasa was jolted out of her guilty conscience when she heard a car door slam.

She checked outside the window and found a man walking up the driveway.

She recognized from the hair and cold eyes it was the man with the mask.

She never knew what he looked like without it; he was never the one to come pick her up.

The doorbell rang, making Mikasa jump.

She used her free hand to open the door and without even a thought, shot the man in front of her.

He was shocked as the bullet entered his body, blood spilling down the front of his shirt.

He crumpled to the ground and his blood pooled around Mikasa's bare feet.

Mikasa smiled and admired her handiwork.

_Why wasn't she feeling guilty like she was moments before?_

Mikasa's hand tightened aorund the gun and she found herself shooting another bullet into the dead man's corpse.

He was already dead, but Miasa couldn't stop herself from shooting the last bullet.

More blood seeped from the man's body and Mikasa laughed.

She threw the gun down into the puddle of blood and she stepped over the man's body.

_She was free at last._

Mikasa ran down the street, her bloody feet tracking everywhere she went. She ran and kept on running until she collapsed from exhaustion on the side of a road and fell into a deep slumber.

~

_A year later_

 

_An unknown location_

Mikasa leaned against the alley wall, watching the people pass by, chatting and flitting about in the rain.

She walked back into the shadows, making sure not to catch their eyes.

They would certainly call the police about a ratty child wandering the streets.

She had to stay hidden, for her freedom.

She continued to watch the people as she walked slowly back into the dark and rotten alley.

But when she bumped into a firm chest she screamed and tears sprang to her eyes.

Mikasa turned around and covered her face with her hands and sinking to her knees, the thoughts of going back the mens' torture filling her mind,wailing, "Please! Don't take me back! I'm sorry!"

The man only laughed and kneeled in front of her. "There's no need to cry, Mikasa."

The man placed his hand on her shoulder and Mikasa looked through her fingers at the man.

His touch felt _familiar_...

"Have you bought me before?" She sobbed.

The man before her was blonde, and was very handsome.

She couldn't remember this man, but over the years all of the different men's' faces had blended in her mind, and she couldn't tell which man was which anymore.

"No, sweetheart, I haven't. I wouldn't like to." The man smiled.

"H-How do you know my name then?" Mikasa snapped.

The man diverted his gaze and frowned.

"I've heard about a girl wandering the streets here who appeared here a year ago. I also heard about a young girl by the name of Mikasa who was kidnapped and went missing. I just put together the puzzle."

Mikasa took a sudden intake of breath and looked to the ground. "I shot a man who was responsible for my kidnapping. I don't have anywhere to go."

The man smiled.

"I have a place for you to go."

Mikasa's eyes widened. "Do you?"

The man nodded. "Yes, and I think you'll like it there."

The man smiled again and his eyes sparkled.

Mikasa felt a feeling she hadn't felt in a long time rise in her chest.

Warmth.

~

Shiganshina, United States of America

Eren could clearly remember the day his family had received Mikasa. He could say it was one of the happiest days of his life. He had found a companion, one that would never leave his side, that day.

It was a rainy evening and Eren had been sitting on the couch watching cartoons on the television. His father was sitting besides him, typing a document on his laptop. His mother was working on dinner in the kitchen, humming as she chopped vegetables and created the meal.

Suddenly the serene home was interrupted by a loud rap on the front door.

Eren sat up quickly, glancing at his father who had closed his laptop and rose to his feet.

This happened often; his father would get visitors and Eren wasn't allowed to open the door without his father besides him.

His father quickly looked past the curtain and through the window and clicked his tongue.

He opened the door and stood outside, despite the heavy rain pounding on the earth.

Eren lied to listen in on these secret conversations, and he could do so discretely with his keen hearing.

Eren heard slight murmuring and heard his father say, "You can't bring her here!".

Eren continued eavesdropping from the couch and heard the visitor pleading, "Grisha, please! This is my last resort!"

There was more murmuring through the door until his father finally walked back into the house with a girl trembling in his arms.

"Carla!" His voice rose. "Help me!"

Eren's mother's eyes widened and she dropped what she was doing and rushed to take the wet and quivering child from his arms.

"She'll be staying with us from now on." He explained.

Eren's father turned to him, a smile doting the ends of his lips. "You'll finally have a sister, Eren."

Eren's eyes widened and squealed in glee.

_Finally someone who would play with him!_

"What's her name?! What's her name?!" Eren bounced.

Eren's father turned around, so he couldn't see his expression when he declared, "Her name is Mikasa."

~

_7 years later_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

"Eren, will you please go get these groceries for me?"

Mikasa waved a shopping list in front of Eren's face, her eyes unreadable.

Eren nibbled on his pencil and frantically ran his fingers through his hair for at least the thousandth time since he started his Algebra 2 homework. "Mikasa! Can't you see I'm busy!!"

Mikasa sighed and waved the shopping list in his face again. "I know, but if you want dinner then go get these for me or else you're not eating!"

Eren groaned and threw his textbook to the other side of the room.

He snatched the shopping list form his sister and stuffed it in his pocket. He took off his reading glasses and stuffed them into his pocket, noticing in the light that the lenses needed to be cleaned.

Really bad.

"I promise that I'll help you when you get back!" Mikasa said.

It was funny, because when Mikasa had been placed under their care he had been told that she hadn't attended a school; that she didn't even know how to spell.

Erne had felt so intelligent standing next to her; teaching her about the shapes and numbers.

But somehow, over the years she surpassed him  and now he was the one that knew absolutely nothing.

Eren grabbed his keys from the hook in the kitchen and then took the list from his pocket, taking a glance at the things Mikasa needed so he could formulate a plan to get the ingredients fast so he could back as soon as possible.

He found that the didn't know what half of these ingredients were and went back into the living room where Mikasa was looking over Eren's homework.

"Hey! I don't know what the heck these things are!"

Mikasa looked at him and jabbed her thumb towards the back of the house. "Ask Mom to go with you."

Eren grunted and ran to the back of the house where his mother was doing the laundry.

"Mom! Let's go shopping! I need help getting things!" Eren explained.

His mother sighed and gently placed the basket of clothes on the floor. "Fine, my boy, but next time you better know where these things are!"

Eren followed his mother out of the house and they boarded his car.

They drove in silence and when they got to the grocery store they gathered the ingredients, laughing and talking about random things mothers and sons talked about.

When they reached the dairy aisle, his mother reached for the half gallon of milk located on the top shelf of the refrigerator.

Eren was looking over the list again when he heard his mother cry out in pain.

Eren ran over to his mother who was clutching her shoulder in agony.

"Mom! Are you okay?!"

His mother had grown very frail over the years and she frequently felt pain in her joints and muscles.

Eren took the milk carton from his mother's grasp and placed it in the cart. He wrapped his arms around her shoulder and held her to his chest, swaying a bit.

"It's okay mom, I'm here." Eren whispered, patting his mother's messy hair down.

Eren paid for the items and they quickly exited the store so Eren's mother could go rest at home. Eren practically threw the groceries into the trunk of the car and hopped into the driver's seat.

He glanced over at his mother, who was trying not to show the pain through her face.

"Mom, you need to get to a doctor." Eren said quietly, wrapping his fingers around the steering wheel.

His mother shook his head, "No, no I'm fine. We can't afford it."

Ever since Eren's father left they had had tricky financial situations.

Eren sighed and started the car.

He drove out of the parking lot and started making his way back home.

The silence in the car soon became overwhelming and Eren couldn't help but exclaim, "Mom, you have to stop this! I can't deal with having to see you in pain every day! Stop acting like its nothing!"

Eren's mother flinched at his words, but still turned to shout at him, "Eren! I am your mother! I'm doing this to protect you and Mikasa's future!"

Before thinking, Eren blurted, "Well we won't be having a future if you're not there with us!"

And then that's when Eren's mother suddenly lurched towards Eren, the sound of crunching metal and glass shattering filling Eren's hearing.

He heard his mother screaming and more screams that seemed to be coming from him.

All Eren could see was blood and light

then there was nothing at all

~

_Time is unknown_

_An unknown location_

Eren couldn't feel anything.

He was drifting, hearing monotone voices, whispered words, but he couldn't get his mind to concentrate.

Everything was dark, and Eren couldn't find the light.

~

_Time is unknown_

_An unknown location_

It was then when Erne finally found the strength to make the slightest movement; a twitch in his left hand.

He took the opportunity to open his eyes, and when he did he wished he didn't.

His whole body felt like it was lead; so heavy, and he couldn't even raise his head.

He felt so drowsy, even though he felt like he had been sleeping.

Then he noticed he was in a bed, a plush pillow holding up his head, which hurt like hell.

Eren took this time to examine his surroundings.

An IV was attached to his arm and he was in a plain hospital room, an empty chair with Mikasa's familiar bag resting against the arm rest.

_How did he...?_

All Eren could remember was that he had been driving with his mother in the passenger's seat and....

Eren's eyes widened and he immediately swung his legs over the gurney when the door opened.

Mikasa stood in the doorway, her eyes dull and her face sunken in.

She looked miserable and depressed, her whole body sagging with an imaginary burden on her shoulders.

But when he eyes laid on Eren, she smiled and raced forward, wrapping her arms around him.

"Eren!" She whispered into his hair. "I'm so glad you're awake!"

Eren pulled away from Mikasa's embrace and asked, "Mikasa! Where's Mom?!"

Mikasa's face fell and a sinking feeling made itself aware in Eren's stomach. "Mikasa!"

When she didn't answer he yelled, "Mikasa! Tell me what happened!"

His left eye twitched, and that's when he noticed something strange.

_His eye...._

_it didn't..._

_feel right...._

He reached up to touch it, when Mikasa took his hand in hers and led him to the bed. "I think you should rest, Eren." Her voice cracked.

Eren obliged and Mikasa sat down besides him.

"Eren," She said quietly, This will be hard to take in, but look in the mirror."

When Eren glanced at her in confusion she pointed to the corner of the room, where a full length mirror stood.

What he saw made his jaw drop.

There, in his gaunt face, where his turquoise eye should have been, there was a gaping hole.

Eren's hand shook as reached up to his face and trailed it along the empty eye socket.

And that's when he started screaming.

And he couldn't stop.

~

_A few days later_

 

_Place is now known: Shiganshina, United States of America_

"Okay, Mr. Jaeger. We tried to find you an eye that looked most like your old one. Go ahead and take a look"

A mirror was placed in Eren's hands and he opened his eyes and gulped.

His bright yellow-hazel eyes was gone; Eren had accepted that fact a few days ago when he was under sedation.

Eren's new eye didn't really look the same.

It was a dull and deep gold, and it seemed to sparkle in the faint light of the room.

He brought a hand up to his face and cradled his cheek as his fingers caressed the skin under his 'eye'.

Then he almost threw down the mirror and spun around to glare at the doctor.

"You told me when I got my new eye I would be able to see my mother. Where is she?"

The doctor was taken aback at the teenager's sudden outburst and took a step back.

"I-I'll take you to her."

~

_A few minutes later_

 

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

There she was.

It was what Eren wanted; to see his mother.

But not like this.

 _Not_ like this.

Her body seemed so small in the hospital gurney; so fragile; so...breakable.

Eren felt even if he gripped her hand that she would apart beneath him.

The doctor had told him that she was in a coma, apparently he had been under one for a few days also.

He had also told him that it was very probable that she would never wake up.

Eren sat besides his mother and rested his head on her lap.

A tear slipped out of his eyes and Eren rubbed at his eyelid, then as he felt the hard material underneath the skin he flinched.

He gripped his mother's body even tighter as he shook, sobbing and willing for her to wake up.

The worst part about the situation was that they couldn't afford her care.

It was really expensive to keep her on life support; Eren knew that.

But maybe, just maybe if he worked harder and got a few jobs he would be able to maintain the financial dilemma.

~

_6 months later_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

Eren leaned against his chair and tried to shake the drowsiness from his body.

He closed his eyes and exhaled loudly.

He hadn't been able to sleep at all for the past three days due to part-time jobs consuming all of his time.

This had also affected his ability to complete his daily assignments and at first Mikasa and Armin had been worried about his grades, but Eren came up with an easy solution...

"Eren!"

He felt the tip of a pencil prodding him in the back, so hard that his eyes flicked wide open.

Eren sat up quickly, almost knocking his desk over when he realized he had been caught dozing off again.

Eren turned around to see Reiner pointing at the teacher who was sitting at her desk in the front of the room with the pencil that had almost became divulged in Eren's back.

"Eren!"

He turned to face the teacher who had walked over to where he was sitting. "Do you have last night's homework on you?"

Eren took a deep gulp and gave her his smoldering gaze with a quirk of his eyebrow. "No ma'am, I wasn't able to complete it."

Eren could detect that the elderly teacher's heart had just melted in her rib age when his multi-colored eyes met hers.

Eren smirked and continued to make her swoon, "I can complete it tonight, if you want."

The teacher waved away the words with a flick if her hand and fanned herself with a page of a newspaper.

"No, Eren, honey it's fine."

She walked slowly to her desk after regaining her footing and Reiner chuckled behind him.

The first time Eren had tried this tactic out he and been surprised by his teachers' response.

Armin had explained that it was his eyes and facial structure, but Eren just liked to think his voice had a secret power that just made everyone do his bidding.

Eren's ability actually worked on his male teachers, and now he swore that they had all turned gay.

But when ordering for Mikasa to make him a sandwich, it didn't work.

She obviously had an antidote.

But even with Eren's strategy, he still was barely making it on his mother's medical bills.

Even with all of his and Mikasa's extra jobs, minimum wage just didn't cut it.

~

_Later_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

Eren clung to his mother's hand and shook his head, his tears flying and spraying the blanket covering his mother's body.

"Mom, I'm sorry! All of this hard work, it was for nothing! I can't pay for your care!"

Eren had to choke out the words just to make sure he wasn't in denial.

"They're taking you off of life support tomorrow."

Eren just buried his face in his mother's chest and cried, not wanting for the inevitable to happen.

"I can help you pay for your mother's expense."

A voice that chilled Eren's bones came from behind him, and Eren's heart stopped when he remembered that he didn't hear a door open.

A tall, blonde, well-dressed man stood behind the son and mother, his hands behind him.

Eren wiped his nose on his sleeve and asked, "Who are you?"

The man approached him and turned his head to the side. "You haven't heard of me."

It wasn't a question, it was more of a statement.

Eren shook his head. "You don't sound surprised that I don't know who you are."

The man leaned down so Eren's nose was only a few centimeters away from his. "I know a lot of things about you that you don't even know yourself, Eren Jaeger."

Eren jumped at the sound of his name and wrapped his arm protectively around his mother.

"Who are you?" He asked again.

"The President of the United States of America, Erwin Smith." The man replied nonchalantly.

Eren's eyes bulged and covered his gaping mouth with his hand, whispering, "You serious?"

Over the past 6 months, Eren and Mikasa had to sell all of their luxuries just to pay for food.

Eren didn't know who this person was and knew he couldn't trust him, but a feeling in his gut told him to go ahead and eat the food from the man's hand.

Erwin nodded and continued on with the reason why he was there, "I can pay for your mother's care if you do me a favor."

Before he can acknowledge what had came out of his mouth, Eren asked, "What favor?"

Erwin smirked. "I'll contact you in due time about it."

Eren shook his head, many thoughts coming to his mind at once.

"I can't, Mr. President, sorry."

Erwin gestured to Eren's mother in the hospital bed and cocked his head to the side.

"I'll put her in the best care imaginable here in Shiganshina, Eren, if you just say yes."

Eren furrowed his brows and glanced at his mother, then at the man.

He had to do this.

To keep his mother alive.

Eren looked up at the man, determination set in his eyes.

"I'll do it."

~

_Present day_

_Shignashina, United States of America_

Mikasa watched Eren sleep; his chest heaving and his brown locks falling into his closed eyes.

Out of habit, she brushed it away.

She remembered when she first met the boy that was her whole life now.

When she and been accepted into this family she had been so joyous she would cry every time she thought about the people she called her parents, her brother.

The first time she had seen Eren, she knew she had found someone she needed to protect from the things that haunted her memories.

She knew she never could tell him about the things she was put through in her childhood; she didn't want him to push her away because of her bloody and cruel past.

Now that she thought about it, when Erwin offered her the job, she knew she had to accept.

She had to protect innocent people like her brother from the people that made her life spiral out of control.

She needed the ability to take the steering wheel of fate and make the car go in the way she wanted.

To make a better life for her and her brother, she had to murder.

But now she doesn't even know if their lives are any better than they were back then.

~

Eren breathed in deeply, pretending to be asleep.

Mikasa brushed away some stray hair that had fallen into his eye and he had to make an effort not to stir.

The memories of the days he was in the hospital and when they were barely getting by pained him, and he wished he had found Erwin sooner.

That's what he used to think.

All he had wanted to do was support his mother, but he had to know deep inside that killing people wasn't the way he should do it.

Everything Erwin told him was wrong.

Even if he took them out of poverty, everything about him just screamed _'something's not right here!'_

There was something diabolical about his cruel smirks, his cold glares.

Eren had to find out what he was scheming..

So innocent lives aren't taken anymore.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Explanation:
> 
> Mikasa: kidnapped at the age of 7 and was sold to men for the 3 years until she murdered her sellers and ran away.  
> She lived homeless for a year until she met Erwin and he took her to Eren's family.
> 
> Motive: To protect innocent people from the the things that happened to her
> 
> Eren: was in a car accident with his mother at the age of 17. Both, son and mother, were in comas due to the accident. Eren woke up to find that his yellow-hazel eye was gone and had to be sedated due to his reaction. After his eyes is replaced with an eye that doesn't look like his original one, he is taken to see his mother. He is told that his mother will probably never wake up again. To keep her on life support, him and Mikasa work very hard, dealing with part-time jobs and using their earnings to go to the mother. Eren usually doesn't have time to do homework, so he covers himself up by seducing both his male and female teachers into letting him go easy. He soon finds that he still doesn't that've enough money to keep his mother alive, and that is when he is approached by Erwin. Erwin pays for the mother's life support while Eren is assassinating people for him.  
> Motive: to support his mother


	7. Backstories cont'd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry about the lack of updates!! I've been really busy, but I will try to find a time to post more often!! 
> 
> *note: the events listed in this chapter are fictitious; not real* 
> 
> For now; enjoy this ridiculously late chapter~~~~

_London, England_

Armin ran through the docks, weaving in between the adults' legs as he looked for a specific person. When he caught glimpse of a tall man with the same blonde hair and blue eyes as him he stopped and wrapped his arms around the man's hips.

When the man acknowledged Armin's presence he heartily chuckled and lifted the young boy into his arms "Armin? How did you know where I was going to be today?"

"I read your plans for today, Father." Armin replied with a smile.

"Oh, did you now?" Armin's father raised his eyebrow and pressed the boy to his chest. "You shouldn't really follow me out here, you know. It's dangerous."

Armin peeled his small body off of his father's and just closed his eyes and laughed. "It's okay Father, as long as I'm with you, I will be safe!"

Armin's father laughed and when someone tapped him on the shoulder his eyes widened.

_'No, not now' He thought._

Armin's father turned around, clutching Armin to his chest.

A squat old man stood in front if him, his face set in a scowl. "Arlert, are you done investigating the scene?"

Armin's smiled nervously and shook his head. "No, sir. I'm sorry I will continue to right now."

The man's eyes drifted to Armin. "Is this your son, Armin Arlert? The prodigy the whole city is talking about?"

Armin's father clutched the boy closer to him and nodded.

"Father, this man knows about me?" Armin's voice rang out.

The boy squirmed in his father's grasp and turned to face the man.

The man smiled, malice shimmering in his cold cobalt eyes."Blue eyes, blonde hair, pale skin. London's 5 year old prodigy. Exactly like his father."

The man turned away, his hands held behind his back. He slowly walked away, his footsteps pounding on the wooden dock. "Get back to work, Arlert."

"Yes, sir!"

~

_Later that night_

"What if he finds out?"

"If we're careful, he won't."

"But the chief seems to know everything! Even if we're careful we don't stand a chance!"

"That's exactly why he's so corrupt."

Armin stood in the doorway, listening to his father and coworker's conversation.

_What were they talking about?_

Armin walked into the room and tapped his father on the shoulder.

Armin's father spun around, shocked at the sight of his son. "A-Armin what are you doing awake?"

Armin's eyes fell to the scattered papers on the table. "You're making a plan."

Armin's father's coworker seemed taken aback by the young boy's statement."Yes, we are."

Armin sat atop his father's lap and read the papers spread before him. "No, this plan won't work."

"What?!" Armin's father's coworker shrieked. "Why not?"

Armin thought about it and then spoke. "If you take this route to the warehouse then there is going to be a lot of bloodshed. If you take this route," Armin traced his finger in another direction. "You'll be certain to get there safely. It'll take longer, but it will do the job."

Armin's father's coworker's eyes were bulging out of his skull. "Are you sure you're only 5???" He squeaked.

Armin smiled sweetly and giggled. "No! I'm 5 and 7 months 9 days and 24 seconds old."

~

_A week later_

The officers moved quietly in the night, the moonlight not daring to spill its light on them. Armin ran behind them, keeping his footsteps quiet so he wasn't identified. He wasn't supposed to be here, but he just wanted to see his father prevail in the fight against good and evil.Good was his father, and evil was the man that his father called corrupt. The officers made into the alley and they stood outside the doors to the warehouse.

Armin's father took a deep breath and whispered, "This is it." He raised his leg to kick down the door when more shadows piled into the alley. 

Armin's father turned to see the person that wasn't supposed to be here. 

The man who was corrupt; the man they called their chief stood blocking the entrance to the alley with his loyal workers behind him. 

"Arlert, you haven't succeeded in exploiting my plan." He chuckled.

Armin's father turned to the chief, breathing heavily. "We know what you're doing Chief. Wait, no you don't even _deserve_ to be called that." 

The chief laughed and only signaled for his subordinates to take out their weapons. Armin, who had been hiding in the shadows started to shake. 

_His plan; it was supposed to be foolproof._

_How did they find out?!_

The chief pointed to all of the officers in the alley with a sickening smirk. "None of you deserve to livd with _this_ information." 

The men behind him readied their guns and bullets flew into the alley. Men fell to the floor, blood was splattered all over the walls. There was so much guts being strewn, the stench of flesh wafted through the air.

Armin could only watch in shock as all of his father's coworkers fell to the ground in agony. Armin's father stood in the middle of all of it, paralyzed all except for his hands shaking. 

The chief took a few steps forward. "Arlert, you were always so naive. People like you disgust me." 

He aimed his gun and Armin flew from the behind him screaming, "Father no!" Armin's father spun around, his face masking one of horror. "Armin! Get away!"

The chief laughed at the scene and only aimed his gun at Armin. Armin's father came running, kneeling to lift the boy off of the floor when the dreaded shot rang out against all of the others against the night. 

Armin screamed as his father fell on top of him, the warm substance leaking from his body spilling on top of Armin. Armin couldn't move; trapped under his father's corpse and from shock. He could hear the chief and his men approaching him, but he felt so numb.

His father was dead, and Armin would soon join him. 

_Shouldn't that be a good thing?_

Armin felt the corpse being lifted from his body and he sighed in relief until his blue eyes locked with the cruel cobalt eyes of the chief's. 

He smiled cruelly and raised a blade that shone even in the dark. "London's 5 year old prodigy. Today you will earn scars that will haunt you until the day you die, of the day you watched your father perish."

The chief laughed and Armin screamed when he felt the blade scrape and sear his skin.

~ 

_5 years later_

_Shiganshina, United States of America_

Armin sighed as he walked down the sidewalk. 

Today was the day. 

Today was the day when Armin watched his father and countless other officers die. It had been half a decade ago, but Armin would never forget it. 

He would never forget the way his father's body felt on top of his, so wet and soggy with blood. So _cold_. 

It was dark and Armin could see a person walking down the same sidewalk as him with the street lamps, and he didn't think anything of it. He was Armin Arlert and he stopped giving shits about petty things like this when his father died. 

He had been at the library reading. The place filled to the roof with books has been his only solace these past 5 years. Sure, living with his grandfather wasn't terrible, but he needed something...more. 

And books gave him that. 

He loved transporting to a different world, because it made him forget that his came crumbling down.

Armin and the person walked closer, and their paths almost seemed to cross. Armin veered to the right, and he felt the person begin to brush against his shoulder. Time seemed to slow as the contact continued and as Armin could hear the person speaking eerily. _"Armin Arlert. London's 5 year old prodigy. Helped to create the plan that evidently killed hundreds of police officers, otherwise known as being the person who created The London Officer Massacre."_

Armin's eyes widened as he stood paralyzed in the middle of the sidewalk, his heart eating rapidly again his ribs. The person walked closer to him, until their chest was pressed against Armin's back. He could feel their breath on his neck and he shuddered as the person murmured in his ear, "But that's not the only thing that happened to you, _is it_ Armin Arlert?" 

The person ran their fingers up and down Armin's side, Armin quivering as the man continued to caress his messed up skin. The person seemed to know exactly where Armin's disfigurements were, and that made Armin creeped even more.

"They cut you repeatedly," The person dragged his hand from Armin's shoulder to his hip, leaving a trail of goosebumps behind. "from your abdomen to your," The person moved his hand to Armin's back, running his fingers along the scars that also littered his back. "back, to your,"The person moved their way up Armin's body, through Armin's hair and onto his forehead, where his most visible scar hid underneath his childish bangs, and purred in his ear _"pretty face."_

Armin shuddered again and began to pant frantically. "Who are you?" He choked out as the person continued to trace his scars repeatedly.

"That wasn't the only thing they did to you, Armin Arlert." The person their hands against Armin's chest, so he was unable to move. "After they cut you up, the gagged you and tossed you into the Thames river, leaving you to drown. Don't you remember the way the muddy water choked you lungs, the way the water turned red with your blood, the way y-"

"Stop it!" Armin yelled, his breathing erratic. "What do you want from me?" 

The person froze at his sudden outburst, then chuckled. "

Do you feel like making some more interesting plans for me, Armin Arlert?"

~ 

_Shiganshina City, United States of America_

_The present day_

Armin hid under the covers of his bed, trying to forget the horrible memory of that night. 

The blade, the blood, the water, his father...

Armin shook his head and tried to control his breathing. 

Why was he doing this again? 

His plans, they all seemed to get people killed. 

Why did he agree to Erwin that night?

He couldn't have been thinking straight; with Erwin's hands all over him; with the sudden memory.. 

That's probably why...right? 

His sub-conscience secretly didn't actually want to murder people...right??

Armin got up from the bed and faced the mirror, lifting his shirt to examine his scars for what seemed the millionth time that night. 

Armin cringed at the grotesque sight of them; the million long, short, deep, shallow cuts that forever would stay on his skin. 

He hated them. 

He hated himself. 

Why..why did he object to the plan his father already had?

It would've been safer...he wouldn't have died.

Armin would never forgive himself for leading his father to his death. 

But he would repent by doing what was good for humanity.

Ridding the world from the horrible people that plagued it. 

Or that's what he _thought_ he was doing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Erwin is a molester o-O  
> Idek anymore XD
> 
> Armin Arlert: once was known as London's Prodigy. Helped his father with a plan to exploit their corrupt chief; which failed. All of the officers died that night; the day now known as the London Officer Massacre. Armin was tortured and cut over and over by the chief and was thrown into the Thames river to drown. Later on, things will be revealed on how Armkn survived the incident. Met Erwin on the streets one day when Erwin announced everything he knew about Armin. Armin joined The Titans, and the rest is history!
> 
> Motive: to repent for killing his father by the ridding the world of the horrible people that plague it
> 
>  
> 
> *Armin sounds a lot like Light Yagami from Deathnote, god XD I didn't mean to do this*


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys! ^-^ I managed to make time for two updates in one week! I hope this is convenient for you guys!!  
> I know I hate it when a fanfic doesn't update *hint hint*  
> So here is a normal chapter for you guys!  
> I tried to make it a little bit heart-warming for ya'll!  
> Tell me what you think!  
> Enjoy~

Eren felt a pain in his legs. He yawned and tried to move his head when he noticed a hand draped over his head. He looked up to see Mikasa asleep with her hand intertwined in his hair. He found that he and Mikasa had fallen asleep squished into the couch (that explains the cramps in his legs); his head on top of Mikasa's lap.

Eren tried to get up silently, but still his movement managed to wake up his sister.

Mikasa's eyes fluttered open and she stretched as a Eren sat down next to her. "Good morning!" Eren smiled.

Mikasa waved and sighed. "So we fell asleep like this?"

Eren nodded and suddenly felt an urge to go make breakfast in the kitchen, or in anywhere in the house really. Eren made his way to the kitchen and looked at the clock. It read 7:50, but Eren thought nothing of it as he hovered over the stove, trying to keep his hands from shaking.

"Eren, what time is it?" Mikasa's voice floated over into the kitchen.

"Um," Eren glanced at the clock again. "7:50." Mikasa sighed.

"You do know it's Tuesday, right?" Eren frowned and then he yelled "Fuck!"

He ran from the room and noticed Mikasa doing the same. He quickly brushed his teeth and chose the cleanest outfit he could that was laying on the floor.

"Godammit I forgot about school!"

"Well, we have a lot on our minds than on any other normal teenagers'." Mikasa responded.

Eren ran his fingers through his hair and nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

They quickly left the house and drove to school; the stop signs not really being obeyed.

Eren stumbled into his desk exactly as the bell rang and class started.

The teacher had had his back to the class and spun around as Eren practically heaved over his desk.

"Who is walking into my class late?" He barked.

When his beady eyes rested on Eren his expression softened and his face flushed. "Oh, Eren, I'm glad you're here."

He spun back around, fixing his hair and tie. "You know what they say, better late than never."

The teacher chuckled softly and continued to write an algebraic equation on the board.

Some of Eren's classmates gave him the evil eye but he just smirked.

His charming talent still hasn't worn off; and that was a good thing.

He had a feeling he would be using it for a while.

~

Eren dribbled the basketball and ran across the court, his shoes squeaking on the gym floor. He moved fast, and soon he had dunked the basketball with cheers coming from his teammates.

Eren wasn't that good at basketball, but he wasn't horrible either.

As he landed back on his feet, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He turned around to see one of the girl freshman office aides, her face tinted red and fanning herself with a paper.

"Eren Jaeger?" She huffed.

Eren raised his eyebrows and nodded.

"You're wanted in the principal's office." She squeaked.

Eren's heart skipped a beat but he only bit his lip.

 

He didn't remember doing anything this time.

~

Eren knocked on the door to the principal's office and heard a "Come in!".

Eren's eyes widened at the sight before him.

President Erwin Smith sat at the principal's desk, his hand folded in front of him.

Armin and Mikasa were sitting in chairs with their wrist bound behind them with handcuffs

 "Armin! Mikasa!" Eren raced towards his friends only to be pushed back by one of the Secret Service agents that had been hiding in the corner of the room. "Sorry, Mr. Jaeger. I'm going to have to cuff you also."

"What?" Eren shrieked, but before he knew it he was sitting next to Armin and Mikasa in front of Erwin with his hands cuffed.

Eren pulled on the metal but only winced his wrists became chafed.

"So," Erwin began. "It's been some time since we saw each other, Eren, Armin, Mikasa."

Erwin's cold blue eyes slid up and down Eren's body, still sweaty from gym class and he smirked.

"You pervert." Eren growled and struggled against the cuffs again.

"Sorry for having you handcuffed," Erwin pointed to the very unhappy teenagers. "But it's only for precaution. Just in case."

Erwin chuckled slightly and Eren felt chills creep up his body And he get tried again to break the bonds. "I have called you here today to discuss some important matters with you." Erwin continued, ignoring Eren's struggles.

"I know you know, but I guess you already figured that out with the _little_ message I left for you last night." Erwin whispered, and immediately the three seniors' eyes widened.

"If you are to do anything about what's going on, then our deals will be simply broken." Erwin's eyes narrowed.

"I can easily take your mother off life support Eren. If any word of this goes out to the public," Erwin nonchalantly gazed out the window. "I'll just make all of your lives a living hell."

Eren breathed heavily as Erwin left the room and he became unbound.

Erwin didn't even _deny_ it.

Something was going on.

And Eren couldn't stop it no matter how hard he tried.

~

"Levi, can you try doing that verse again? You were a little bit out of tune..."

"Tch, fine."

Levi pressed his lips against the microphone and sighed.

Ever since this shit started he hasn't been at his best. They were recording their new album now and he couldn't concentrate on the right notes, right lyrics, and was just slowing the whole process down.

Levi sang into the microphone, trying his best not to screw it all up again.

He felt a buzz in his pocket and pressed the large bulky headphones to his ear so that he could hear the music instead of loud vibration.

Levi scrunched his eyes and tried to sing without the fury in his voice for whoever was calling him.

"Okay, that's good Levi. Go ahead and take a break."

Levi nodded and took a swig from his water bottle.

He exited the room and reached inside his pocket and finally answered the call.

"What do you want?!"

 "L-Levi.."

Levi's heart skipped a beat and immediately he became concerned. "Eren, what happened?"

He could practically hear the boy shaking on the other side of the line.

"Levi...c-can you pick us up please?"

"Eren, _what's wrong_?" Levi clenched the cellphone in his hand and was surprised that it was going to crunch underneath his grip.

_Why did he feel so upset at the thought of Eren being hurt?_

"Just, come here _please_."

Eren hung up and Levi furiously shoved the cellphone into his pocket and burst back into the recording studio where Gunter was recording his beat. The whole crew was startled at Levi's sudden outburst.

Levi ran to the corner of the room where his jacket and bag was and almost stumbled when he tripped over a chair leg.

As Levi slipped the jacket onto his shoulders, Petra approached him. "Levi, what's wrong?"

Levi shook his head and laughed nervously. "Nothing, a brat just needs to get picked up, that's all."

Petra raised her eyebrow and Auruo sneered. "Are you just picking a brat up so you can do perverted shi-" Erd elbowed Aruro in the ground and he fell to the ground in pain.

Petra laid a hand on Levi's wrist. "Well when do you think you'll be coming back?" Her hazel eyes were hopeful but Levi just looked away.

"I don't think ill be coming back. Today, anyways."

He shook his wrist free from Petra's grip and made his way to the exit, trying to escape under her gaze.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow then?" She called out.

"Yeah." Levi grunted and practically ran to his car.

~

When Levi's car pulled by the school's curb, Eren practically flew into the vehicle. Mikasa and Armin followed suit, except a bit more calmer.

Levi turned around in his seat and gave the three teenagers a once-over.

They didn't look hurt, except for their wrists, which were a bit red and sore.

"What happened?" Levi demanded.

Eren bit his lip and the pain in his multi-colored eyes made his heart clench.

"Erwin...came to visit us."

Levi huffed and gripped the back of his seat and tried to look impassive.

"He...cuffed us against chairs."

 _'Well that explains the hurt wrists.'_ Levi thought.

"And he threatened us..Levi, _he knows we know._ He was probably the one who sent us the message...and to make it clearer," Eren closed his eyes and turned away. "He told us in person and..threatened us."

Eren's eyes filled with tears as he clenched his fists. "Levi, if any of this gets out... _He's going to take my mom off of life support."_

Levi's face fell.

He didn't know Eren's story; he didn't know any of the Titans' stories as a matter of fact.

But he obviously made a deal with Erwin, just like he did.

Eren punched the seat as tears spilled onto his cheeks. "He is going to make our lives a living hell Levi!"

Levi bit his lip and shook his head. "I'm not going to let him, brat."

Eren looked up at him and sniffed, and smiled softly. "Thank you Levi." He reached over and wrapped his arms around Levi's neck in an embrace.

Levi stood still and his breath hitched; what was this brat doing?

"Eren, what are you doing?" Levi breathed heavily.

Eren looked up at him, confused. "Hugging you..?"

Now it was Levi's time to be confused. "Hugging..?"

Eren's face split into one of his famous grins. He began to laugh and the other two began to laugh as well.

"Oi, what's so funny?"

"You don't know what hugging is, Levi?" Armin laughed.

Of course he didn't know what hugging was. He used to be a French thug; he didn't get hugs. He didn't let his fans touch him at meet-and-greets either because, where have their hands been? Gross!

Levi shook his head and Eren smiled. "Let me teach you then, Levi." Eren wrapped his arms around Levi's neck again. "This is what a hug is Levi."

Levi slowly wrapped his arms around Eren's waist and rested his head on Eren's shoulder.

Hugging Eren...felt nice.

"Thank you Levi." Eren whispered.

Levi felt two other pairs of arms wrap around him.

"Yeah, thanks Levi."

"For everything."

Levi smiled softly and tried to hug the three teenagers at once. "It's no problem."

Levi didn't want to admit it, but honestly he would do anything for these brats; to keep them safe.

_Anything._

_~_

Erwin smirked as he watched the three teenagers and Levi hug.

"How heart-warming." He smirked and he fingered a red button besides him. 

It was lustrous against all of the computers that showed footage from Levi's band recording session, to Hangi's experiment lab, to Eren and Mikasa's bathroom.

Erwin particularly loved _that_ channel.

Erwin stopped his finger-swriling on the button and froze.

He clasped his hands together and chuckled. 

No,today won't do.

The button mustn't be pressed until...well when the time is right of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love making Erwin really perverted lol XD  
> Thank you guys for reading!  
> I love you all!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi you guys!!   
> I AM VERY SORRY FOR NOT POSTING FREQUENTLY!! PLEASE FORGIVE ME!!  
> Here's a chapter though, so I hope you enjoy!!!  
> This chapter introduces new characters, so I'm really excited!  
> I hope you enjoy~<3

"Where are we going?"

"I'll tell you when we get there."

"But then we're already going to know by the tim-"

"Shut up, brat!"

"Oi!"

Eren sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. He decided to look out the window and watch the scenery pass by.

"Seriously though, you're not just taking us out for a _lovely_ car ride to get ice cream right?" Eren asked, his voice monotone despite the joking matter of his statement.

"No," Levi replied. "I'm taking you out for a _lovely_ car ride to go to a prison."

"Oh okay." Eren smiled a bit, then Levi's words processed in his mind.

"WAIT WHAT?!"

~

"Seriously though, what are we doing here?"

The four of them stood in the lobby of the prison, waiting for someone to escort them to the visiting room.

"What does it look like we're doing here, dipshit?" Levi said crossly.

Eren sighed as an officer approached them. He escorted them to the visiting room where some people and prisoners were talking. They sat down at a table and Levi whispered something into the officer's ear. His eyes widened but he scurried away.

He came back a few moments later with four people: a girl with brown hair tied up into a ponytail with bangs framing her face, a boy with his hair cut close to his head, a boy with black short hair with freckles dotting his face, and a boy with a weird undercut hair-do and with (in Eren's opinion) a horse-like face. They were all dressed in orange jumpsuits and were handcuffed.

'What did they do so bad to get into prison?' Eren thought. 'They look around my age...'

The officer sat the prisoners down in front of them, his quizzical look never leaving his face. He left, examining Eren, Levi, Mikasa, and Armin as if they had Ebola, or some other contagious disease.

As soon as the officer was out of earshot, the horse-faced male snapped to look at the three teenagers and the singer. He looped his cuffed hands through the freckled boy's arm and shouted, "Who are you?! What do you want?! If you want to hurt Marco I swear I will beat the shi-"

The freckled boy named Marco tried comforting the other boy, but that was difficult to do since they were bound. "Jean, don't be so accusing. Maybe they're here to help us."

The boy named Jean sighed, "What if they're not? You can't be so welcoming to everyone Marco. God, you're so naïve."

The two of them continued to argue and the brown haired girl just smiled softly. "Who cares about that petty stuff? More importantly..."

She shot out of her seat and lunged at Levi. _"Where's the food?!"_

Levi fellout of his seat as the girl began to drool and started gnawing at the air. The other boy besides her tried pulling her down to her seat with an annoyed glare. " _Godammit Sasha!_ You just don't lunge at people to satisfy your demonic needs."

"Shut the fuck up Connie!" She yelled and continued to claw at the four, now very disturbed, people in front of them.

Connie finally stopped trying to restrain her and pressed the heel of his hand into his temple. "Am I the only one sane here?"

Eren smiled weakly. "I think so."

Eren turned to Levi, who had gotten up from his position on the floor and was now trying fix his hair, which had gotten disturbed during the encounter with Sasha. "Levi, who are these maniacs?"

Levi turned to look at the four prisoners, and frowned. "They are _supposed_ to be people that happen to have vital information."

"Erwin's assassin group before he recruited us, _The Cadets_."

~

After the four prisoners had calmed down, Levi began to explain.

He pointed at Sasha and started with the introductions. "Sasha Braus, The Killer. Exemplary skills with a bow and arrow that kind of puts me to shame."

Armin's eyes widened. "Someone is better than Levi at something athletic??"

Levi rolled his eyes. "I said it _kind of_ puts me to shame. There's a difference."

Eren chuckled softly. "He just making excuses, Armin."

Levi smacked Eren on the head and he fell silent.

Levi pointed at Connie. "Connie Springer, The Charmer."

Mikasa raised her eyebrow. " _He's_ The Charmer? I bet a _monkey_ can do better."

Connie crossed his arms across his chest. "Oh really? Well why don't you stick a banana up your-"

Levi slammed his fist on the table. "Shut up brats. Let me finish Godammit!"

Levi ran his fingers through his hair and sighed. "Marco Bott is The Researcher."

Marco smiled and Jean just pulled him closer to his side. "And I, Jean Kirchstein am The Leader."

Eren raised his eyebrow. "Are you sure about that, Horseface?"

Jean nodded and rolled his eyes. "Yes! How are you able to charm people with your brows?"

Eren's hand flew to his eyebrows. "What's wrong with them? At least I don't have a horse face, Horseface!"

"Brow!"

"Horseface!"

The two continued bickering and Marco's smile twitched a bit. "Jean, Eren. You two just met. Can we all just get along?"

"Shut up, _Freckles_!"Jean and Eren shouted at him, a dark aura surrounding them.

Marco backed off and Levi banged his fist against the table.

"Shut up incompetent brats! We're not here to argue! We're here to get information."

The table quieted and Levi leaned in towards the Cadets, a gleam in his eye. "I heard you found out something that got you all in prison," Levi smirked. "care to tell us, predecessors?"

Jean leaned forward and smiled, a malice so strong surrounding his hazel irises.

_"With pleasure."_

~

"Erwin is a douchebag, but I guess you already figured that out if you're coming to us for help."

Jean propped his legs on the table. "He's a man full of secrets. There's probably secrets in his _eyebrows_ , for God's sake!"

"Just get to the point you little shit!" Eren's eye twitched.

Jean shot Eren a look, then continued. "Erwin hired us before you guys because he wanted to test out what managing a group was like. We knew he was going to throw us away, but not in a jail."

"A jail with horrible food." Sasha muttered.

"We discovered," Jean looked around the room warily. "He was performing a series of..." Jean licked seductively licked his lips and Eren felt his face grow hot. Levi swatted Eren's thigh and he came back to his senses soon enough to hear the word " _experiments_."

"Experiments?" Armin raised his eyebrow.

"We don't even know what they were for." Marco shrugged. "We just know he has a really expensive laboratory near the White House that has the highest security in the entire country."

"We tried breaking into there, but we failed and got thrown into his shithole." Connie sighed.

"What did you think they were doing in there?" Eren asked, his fingers shaking. Levi took Eren's hand in his and laced his fingers through his.

Levi mouthed 'It will be okay.' and Eren's fingers immediately stood still.

He hated the way Levi made everything better.

Jean exhaled loudly. "We don't really know but.."

Sasha's left eye twitched. "We're pretty sure they're working on something..." Connie

crinkled his nose. "Devious!"

Marco's eye looked pained. "We're thinking it's the secret to..."

"Immortality."

~

_Erwin watched as his assistants, or what he liked to call them, slaves worked in his laboratory._

_A tall brunette with freckles was mixing some chemicals with a stirring rod in a beaker while a short blonde recorded her observations._

_'Still hard at work, aren't they?' He thought. 'Very well.'_

_'It should be done soon.'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Cadets lol XD  
> I tried to make that with Eren and Jean ("Shut up, Freckles!) like that incident in D. Gray-Man with Allen and Kanda and Lavi (Edo, Japan; Allen had just come back from the Asian branch and Kanda had just tried killing him and then they started arguing then Lavi tried interfering and then...yeeaah)  
> I AM A D GRAY MAN FREAK OKAY!  
> And Ereri yes yes


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HELLO HELLO ^ - ^  
> I am sorry I have been super busy and I kind of forgot about this story I am sorry kill me i deserve i am such a horrible person oh my god  
> OH WEEL HERE IT IS I HOPE YOU LOVE IT SEEING ALL OF YOUR COMMENTS MAKE ME HAPPY!!

They left the prison with many unanswered questions in their minds.

"The secret to immortality?" Levi rubbed his chin and frowned. "What is Erwin thinking?"

"Why wasn't Hangi here with us? She probably could have figured it out." Armin asked thoughtfully.

Levi sighed. "She's been taking it...hard with the Erwin thing. I didn't want to stress her out any more."

Armin nodded and Eren just clenched his fists. "Who cares about immortality?! The fun of life is living to the fullest not knowing when you're going to die!"  
“Maybe,” Mikasa sighed. “He’s just a coward like the rest of us.”  
They all took that in, letting it soak into their skins.  
Levi gripped the steering wheel. “Anyways, let’s go talk with Hangi. She might have an idea about what the heck is going on. She was the closest to Erwin, she might understand whatever is going on in that pretty blonde’s head.”  
They drove to Hangi’s laboratory. It seemed like a cheerful place to commit experiments with its white peeling paint and overgrown weeds.  
“Such a nice place.” Armin grimaced as he stepped over what seemed to be a garden hose. He shrieked as the “hose” hissed at him. They walked up to the door, waiting patiently after ringing the doorbell.  
Hangi appeared after a few minutes, looking particularly frazzled. Her mousy brown hair stuck out from her ponytail in all directions and her white lab coat was wrinkled.  
“Why, hello!” She chuckled falsely. “What are you all doing here?”  
“Hangi, we need to talk.” Levi said sternly. Hangi’s face fell and she led them inside into the exact office where Erwin had been years earlier.  
They all explained to her what had happened reluctantly and when they finished, to their surprise, she didn’t seem shaken. Orr if she did, she didn’t show it.  
“Well,” She sighed. “That’s something.”  
“Do you have any idea, if this, immortality thing, is true?” Eren asked.  
Hangi shook her head slowly. “No, I don’t know, but there is one thing I do know.” She took slips of paper out of her lab coat pockets with a flourish.  
“We’re flying to Sina, Capital of the U-nited St-ates of America!!”  
Levi’s jaw dropped. “What…?!”  
“Don’t sound so excited Levi, I thought you already knew we were going! The Scouting Legion’s first concert of their tour is there! It took me forever to get these tickets! We'll just be getting there a tad bit early, that's all! How did you not know?”  
Levi turned away sheepishly. “Well… maybe I haven’t been paying attention lately.”  
“Levi!”  
Hangi threw the tickets around the room, cheering. Mikasa picked up a ticket. “Why are there 9 tickets if there are only 5 of us?”  
Hangi stopped frolicking around and tugged on her ponytail nervously. “Yeah…about that…”

“WE ARE HELPING PRSIONERS BREAK OUT OF JAIL?!?!”


End file.
